Ethic Inc. Buys New Shares in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Ethic Inc. bought a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 6,240 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $793,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. GeoWealth Management LLC grew its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 115.4% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 265 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 93.5% during the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 269 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the 4th quarter worth about $51,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SFM. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $119.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Roth Capital set a $155.00 price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $195.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Roth Mkm raised their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $167.79.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CMO Alisa Gmelich sold 677 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.18, for a total value of $118,596.86. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,552 shares in the company, valued at approximately $972,599.36. This trade represents a 10.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph D. O'leary sold 2,000 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.40, for a total transaction of $318,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,931 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,858,201.40. This trade represents a 10.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 106,141 shares of company stock worth $15,170,636. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of SFM opened at $158.48 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $15.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $154.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $148.83. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a one year low of $74.15 and a one year high of $178.99.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.27. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 4.93% and a return on equity of 29.86%. The firm had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.12 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Sprouts Farmers Market

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.

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