Foster & Motley Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Foster & Motley Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 17.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,997 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,701 shares during the period. Foster & Motley Inc.'s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $2,287,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SFM. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its stake 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 buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market during the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 80.6% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 363 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 1,425.8% in 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 last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

Shares of SFM stock traded down $1.03 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $155.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 51,848 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,187,557. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a twelve month low of $49.81 and a twelve month high of $158.84. The stock has a market cap of $15.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.63. The business has a fifty day moving average of $142.41 and a 200-day moving average of $120.74.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.88 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 28.24% and a net margin of 4.73%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 13.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.68 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 2,935 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.74, for a total transaction of $407,201.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 149,499 shares in the company, valued at $20,741,491.26. This represents a 1.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Joseph D. O'leary sold 350 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.11, for a total value of $52,538.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,991 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,700,629.01. This trade represents a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 61,869 shares of company stock worth $8,778,152. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Sprouts Farmers Market 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.