New Age Alpha Advisors LLC Invests $1.16 Million in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 9,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,162,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 4th quarter worth approximately $143,113,000. Parametrica Management Ltd bought a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $211,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 53.6% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 5,160 shares of the company’s stock worth $656,000 after buying an additional 1,800 shares during the last quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. boosted its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 32.3% during the 4th quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. now owns 43,917 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,579,000 after buying an additional 10,725 shares during the period. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. grew its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 106.4% in the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 47,649 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,055,000 after buying an additional 24,567 shares during the last quarter.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock opened at $152.64 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $14.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.67. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $152.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $138.07. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a twelve month low of $61.61 and a twelve month high of $178.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.96 billion. As a group, research analysts expect that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SFM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $132.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $174.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $119.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $160.00 target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $167.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sprouts Farmers Market

In related news, VP Stacy W. Hilgendorf sold 890 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.42, for a total transaction of $122,303.80. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 9,347 shares in the company, valued at $1,284,464.74. This represents a 8.69 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CMO Alisa Gmelich sold 445 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.42, for a total transaction of $61,151.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 4,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $609,595.12. The trade was a 9.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 94,784 shares of company stock worth $13,231,786 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.