Pacer Advisors Inc. Grows Position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 54.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 22,614 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 8,012 shares during the quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $2,874,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the third quarter worth $25,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 93.5% during the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 269 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 80.6% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 363 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 1,425.8% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 473 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 442 shares during the period.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

NASDAQ SFM traded up $2.09 on Friday, reaching $158.34. 1,676,520 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,132,103. The stock has a market cap of $15.83 billion, a PE ratio of 45.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.63. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 12 month low of $49.81 and a 12 month high of $160.03. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $142.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $121.51. 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 (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.88 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.65 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 13.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SFM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $127.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Sprouts Farmers Market currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $119.40.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Joseph L. Hurley sold 4,956 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 5,714 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.60, for a total transaction of $757,676.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 199,576 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,463,777.60. This represents a 2.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 61,869 shares of company stock valued at $8,778,152. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Sprouts Farmers Market Company Profile

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.