Private Advisor Group LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Private Advisor Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 67.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,667 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,087 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $847,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SFM. Waldron Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the third quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 4.5% in the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,645 shares of the company’s stock worth $402,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 6.2% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 74,228 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,196,000 after acquiring an additional 4,347 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 42.4% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 44,124 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,872,000 after acquiring an additional 13,142 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 100.0% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. now owns 4,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $442,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

Sprouts Farmers Market stock opened at $130.21 on Friday. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 52-week low of $39.98 and a 52-week high of $135.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.63, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $91.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.88 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 4.73% and a return on equity of 28.24%. Sprouts Farmers Market’s quarterly revenue was up 13.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.65 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on SFM. Roth Mkm raised their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $58.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Melius Research began coverage on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $105.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada started coverage on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $107.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $127.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $115.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 5,714 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.52, for a total transaction of $545,801.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 233,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,338,307.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 5,714 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.52, for a total value of $545,801.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 233,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,338,307.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Hari K. Avula sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.50, for a total transaction of $241,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 10,554 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,018,461. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 57,543 shares of company stock valued at $5,751,870 over the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.