Isthmus Partners LLC Sells 28,516 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Isthmus Partners LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 55.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 22,974 shares of the company's stock after selling 28,516 shares during the period. Isthmus Partners LLC's holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $2,919,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. SLT Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the 4th quarter valued at $828,000. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 450.5% during the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 11,329 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,440,000 after buying an additional 9,271 shares in the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the 4th quarter valued at $209,000. Banco Santander S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the 4th quarter valued at $819,000. Finally, Aviance Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 20,365 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,588,000 after buying an additional 1,045 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on SFM. BMO Capital Markets lifted 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. 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 note on Friday, February 28th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $140.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Sprouts Farmers Market currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $154.15.

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Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.24, for a total transaction of $4,477,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 163,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,454,764.88. This represents a 15.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Joe Fortunato sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.80, for a total transaction of $724,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 28,571 shares in the company, valued at $4,137,080.80. This represents a 14.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 46,564 shares of company stock worth $6,890,970. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SFM traded up $2.49 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $137.40. 1,555,784 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,586,269. The company's 50-day moving average is $150.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $133.94. 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 capitalization of $13.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.54, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.67. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 1 year low of $60.46 and a 1 year high of $178.99.

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