7,842 Shares in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Purchased by Virtue Capital Management LLC

Virtue Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 7,842 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $996,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. GeoWealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 115.4% in the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 265 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings 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 valued at $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 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 289 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 4th quarter worth $51,000.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Timmi Zalatoris sold 1,065 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.97, for a total value of $143,743.05. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 9,830 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,326,755.10. This trade represents a 9.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Stacy W. Hilgendorf sold 890 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.42, for a total value of $122,303.80. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 9,347 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,284,464.74. This trade represents a 8.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 129,277 shares of company stock worth $18,912,055 in the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Roth Mkm upped their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Roth Capital set a $155.00 price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $163.00 to $190.00 in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $167.79.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

Shares of SFM stock traded down $1.84 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $167.43. The company had a trading volume of 1,383,350 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,442,628. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 52-week low of $74.15 and a 52-week high of $178.99. 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's 50 day moving average price is $159.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $151.19. The company has a market capitalization of $16.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.12 earnings per share. Sprouts Farmers Market's revenue was up 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current 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.