Zacks Investment Management Acquires New Shares in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Zacks Investment Management purchased a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 11,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,404,000.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 128.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 199,035 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,975,000 after purchasing an additional 111,838 shares during the last quarter. Rule One Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the 3rd quarter valued at $14,022,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 15,578 shares of the company's stock worth $1,720,000 after acquiring an additional 1,402 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 3rd quarter worth about $13,348,000. Finally, Sfmg LLC bought a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 3rd quarter valued at about $234,000.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

Shares of SFM stock traded up $2.04 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $166.71. 440,594 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,420,563. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $150.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $143.65. 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 12-month low of $64.02 and a 12-month high of $178.99. The company has a market capitalization of $16.37 billion, a PE ratio of 44.36, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87.

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

Insider Transactions at Sprouts Farmers Market

In related news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 2,915 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.36, for a total value of $435,384.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 189,315 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,276,088.40. The trade was a 1.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Timmi Zalatoris sold 1,065 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.97, for a total transaction of $143,743.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,830 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,326,755.10. The trade was a 9.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 96,764 shares of company stock worth $13,562,649 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on SFM. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $163.00 to $190.00 in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Northcoast Research upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $185.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Bank of America upped their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $185.00 to $180.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sprouts Farmers Market has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $167.00.

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.