Congress Asset Management Co. Sells 194,373 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Congress Asset Management Co. decreased its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 22.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 666,245 shares of the company’s stock after selling 194,373 shares during the quarter. Congress Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $73,560,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cetera Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the 1st quarter valued at $349,000. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. increased its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 8.5% in the first quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 616,429 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,748,000 after purchasing an additional 48,225 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC lifted its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 78.8% in the first quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 26,113 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,684,000 after buying an additional 11,508 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 59.8% during the second quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 16,790 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,405,000 after buying an additional 6,286 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the 1st quarter worth about $1,643,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on SFM shares. 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 target price on the stock. Roth Mkm lifted their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $58.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $111.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $63.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sprouts Farmers Market presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $108.20.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Up 9.1 %

SFM stock traded up $10.76 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $129.60. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,363,075 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,313,244. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $108.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $90.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.44. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a twelve month low of $39.76 and a twelve month high of $135.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.81, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.56.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last released its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.88 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 27.53% and a net margin of 4.52%. Sprouts Farmers Market’s quarterly revenue was up 13.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.39 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other news, Director Joe Fortunato sold 7,895 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.38, for a total transaction of $776,710.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 45,071 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,434,084.98. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, Director Joe Fortunato sold 7,895 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.38, for a total value of $776,710.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 45,071 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,434,084.98. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 5,714 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.52, for a total transaction of $545,801.28. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 233,860 shares in the company, valued at $22,338,307.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 65,438 shares of company stock worth $6,528,580. 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.