EAM Investors LLC Reduces Position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

EAM Investors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 55.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 33,114 shares of the company's stock after selling 40,493 shares during the period. EAM Investors LLC's holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $4,208,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the fourth quarter valued at about $143,113,000. Congress Asset Management Co. increased its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 94.9% during the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 1,298,768 shares of the company's stock worth $165,034,000 after purchasing an additional 632,523 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $64,117,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 22.9% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,582,896 shares of the company's stock valued at $201,139,000 after buying an additional 294,553 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the fourth quarter worth $19,926,000.

Insider Transactions at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, VP Stacy W. Hilgendorf sold 229 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.43, for a total value of $31,929.47. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 10,226 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,425,811.18. This represents a 2.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 2,915 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.54, for a total value of $488,379.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,669 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,070,304.26. This represents a 1.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 96,764 shares of company stock valued at $13,562,649 over the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of SFM stock traded up $0.71 on Friday, reaching $160.15. 1,270,951 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,424,115. The company has a 50-day moving average of $150.85 and a 200-day moving average of $142.60. The company has a market cap of $15.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.59, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.59. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a one year low of $63.16 and a one year high of $178.99.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.96 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 29.86% and a net margin of 4.93%. Analysts anticipate that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SFM has been the topic of several recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $163.00 to $190.00 in a report on Monday, March 17th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $119.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $185.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $167.00.

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.