Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Shares Sold by Vestcor Inc

Vestcor Inc decreased its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 3.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 263,558 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,904 shares during the quarter. Sprouts Farmers Market makes up 0.9% of Vestcor Inc's holdings, making the stock its 18th largest position. Vestcor Inc owned about 0.26% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $29,099,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 223.5% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 317 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of 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.

Insider Activity

In other Sprouts Farmers Market 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 value of $657,462.96. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,184 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,483,669.44. This represents a 30.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Joseph D. O'leary sold 350 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.11, for a total transaction of $52,538.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 17,991 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,700,629.01. This represents a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 29,155 shares of company stock valued at $3,742,274 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Up 1.9 %

Sprouts Farmers Market stock traded up $2.71 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $146.92. 1,178,653 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,335,107. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $132.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $105.73. The company has a market capitalization of $14.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.46, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.58. 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $45.88 and a 52-week high of $155.64.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.88 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.65 EPS. The company's revenue was up 13.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on SFM. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $90.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $102.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Bank of America boosted their price objective on 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, StockNews.com upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 28th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target 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.