Invesco Ltd. Purchases 294,553 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 22.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,582,896 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 294,553 shares during the quarter. Invesco Ltd. owned approximately 1.58% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $201,139,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of SFM. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 93.5% in the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 269 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 84.1% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 289 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market in the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 32.9% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 460 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares in the last quarter.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SFM traded down $0.08 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $160.19. 1,177,309 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,417,420. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.60, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a one year low of $61.61 and a one year high of $178.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.13. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $151.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $141.79.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on SFM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $140.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $160.00 price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Northcoast Research raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $185.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of 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. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $167.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Joe Fortunato sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.80, for a total value of $724,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 28,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,137,080.80. This represents a 14.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 2,915 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.36, for a total transaction of $435,384.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 189,315 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,276,088.40. The trade was a 1.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 99,699 shares of company stock valued at $13,969,851. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.