Hennessy Advisors Inc. Sells 757,400 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Hennessy Advisors Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 82.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 158,900 shares of the company's stock after selling 757,400 shares during the quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. owned about 0.16% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $20,191,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 2.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,484,059 shares of the company's stock valued at $275,634,000 after acquiring an additional 56,161 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 167.4% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,555,192 shares of the company's stock valued at $130,107,000 after purchasing an additional 973,666 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 13.1% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,349,694 shares of the company's stock valued at $149,020,000 after purchasing an additional 156,175 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 983,257 shares of the company's stock worth $108,561,000 after buying an additional 48,103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Driehaus Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 7.8% during the 2nd quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 734,992 shares of the company's stock worth $61,489,000 after buying an additional 53,165 shares during the last quarter.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Down 0.9 %

SFM traded down $1.28 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $139.25. 1,343,105 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,167,050. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $141.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $116.81. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 1-year low of $48.98 and a 1-year high of $155.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

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

Insider Transactions at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.24, for a total value of $4,477,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 163,862 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,454,764.88. The trade was a 15.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph D. O'leary sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.11, for a total value of $52,538.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 17,991 shares in the company, valued at $2,700,629.01. The trade was a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 61,869 shares of company stock worth $8,778,152 over the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $127.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Melius Research initiated coverage on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a "hold" rating and a $105.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $90.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $118.40.

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.