Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Position Lowered by Clean Yield Group

Clean Yield Group lessened its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 6.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 89,188 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,259 shares during the period. Sprouts Farmers Market comprises about 3.6% of Clean Yield Group's holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Clean Yield Group owned about 0.09% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $11,333,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 15.4% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 4,438,144 shares of the company's stock worth $371,295,000 after purchasing an additional 593,600 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 2.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,484,059 shares of the company's stock valued at $275,634,000 after acquiring an additional 56,161 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 167.4% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,555,192 shares of the company's stock valued at $130,107,000 after acquiring an additional 973,666 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 13.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,349,694 shares of the company's stock valued at $149,020,000 after acquiring an additional 156,175 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,053,531 shares of the company's stock worth $88,138,000 after acquiring an additional 28,636 shares during the period.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Up 0.5 %

NASDAQ:SFM traded up $0.64 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $138.62. 977,779 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,426,740. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 1 year low of $48.98 and a 1 year high of $155.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.63. The business's 50-day moving average price is $141.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $115.06. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.14. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 4.73% and a return on equity of 28.24%. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.88 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.65 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 13.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on SFM. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $127.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America upped their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Melius Research started coverage on Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a "hold" rating and a $105.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $118.40.

Insider Activity

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, insider Joseph L. Hurley sold 4,956 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.66, for a total transaction of $657,462.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,184 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,483,669.44. This represents a 30.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph D. O'leary sold 350 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.11, for a total transaction of $52,538.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,991 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,700,629.01. The trade was a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 58,934 shares of company stock valued at $8,370,950 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

About Sprouts Farmers Market

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the retailing of fresh, natural, and organic food products under the Sprouts brand in the United States. It offers perishable product categories, including fresh produce, meat and meat alternatives, seafood, deli, bakery, floral, and dairy and dairy alternatives; and non-perishable product categories, such as grocery, vitamins and supplements, bulk items, frozen foods, beer and wine, and natural health and body care.