FIL Ltd Sells 9,096 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

FIL Ltd reduced its position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 19.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 36,848 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,096 shares during the period. FIL Ltd's holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $4,682,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the fourth quarter worth approximately $143,113,000. Congress Asset Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 94.9% in the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 1,298,768 shares of the company's stock worth $165,034,000 after acquiring an additional 632,523 shares during the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the fourth quarter worth $64,117,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake 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 purchasing an additional 294,553 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 3rd quarter worth about $18,259,000.

Insider Transactions at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other news, VP Stacy W. Hilgendorf sold 229 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 20th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,425,811.18. This trade represents a 2.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 2,915 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.36, for a total transaction of $435,384.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 189,315 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,276,088.40. This trade represents a 1.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 96,764 shares of company stock valued at $13,562,649. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $119.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report 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 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $140.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $163.00 to $190.00 in a report on Monday, March 17th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $167.00.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock traded up $0.71 during trading on Friday, hitting $160.15. 1,270,951 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,422,890. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a twelve month low of $62.72 and a twelve month high of $178.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The company has a market cap of $15.72 billion, a PE ratio of 42.59, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $150.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $142.26.

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 business had revenue of $2 billion during 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 forecast that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

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.