Norges Bank Purchases Shares of 1,126,256 Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 1,126,256 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $143,113,000. Norges Bank owned about 1.13% of Sprouts Farmers Market at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 93.5% during the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 269 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 84.1% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 289 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 32.9% during the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the period.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. 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 report on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $119.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $132.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $163.00 to $190.00 in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $167.00.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Up 3.3 %

Shares of SFM opened at $152.64 on Tuesday. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 12 month low of $61.61 and a 12 month high of $178.99. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $152.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $138.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market cap of $14.96 billion, a PE ratio of 40.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.67.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.79 EPS 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 firm had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.96 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other news, VP Stacy W. Hilgendorf sold 890 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.42, for a total transaction of $122,303.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 9,347 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,284,464.74. This represents a 8.69 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed 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 sale, the insider now owns 9,830 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,326,755.10. This trade represents a 9.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 94,784 shares of company stock valued at $13,231,786. Corporate 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.