Arkadios Wealth Advisors Buys New Stake in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Key Points

• Arkadios Wealth Advisors invested approximately $589,000 in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc., buying 3,861 shares in the 1st quarter.
• Sprouts Farmers Market reported earnings of $1.35 per share for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' estimates of $1.23, with revenue increasing by 17.3% year-over-year to $2.22 billion.
• Multiple analysts have set price targets for Sprouts, with UBS Group at $180 and Evercore ISI raising theirs to $185, indicating a positive sentiment for the stock.

Arkadios Wealth Advisors acquired a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 3,861 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $589,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SFM. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 92.0% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 192 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the first quarter valued at $30,000. GeoWealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 115.4% in the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 265 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 111.3% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 319 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the fourth quarter worth about $63,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on SFM. Barclays upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $173.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $175.00 to $180.00 in a report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Roth Capital set a $155.00 price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $171.87.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SFM traded down $0.13 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $150.62. 853,820 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,741,222. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $94.15 and a fifty-two week high of $182.00. The firm has a market cap of $14.72 billion, a PE ratio of 31.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.78. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $162.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $158.55.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.12. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 5.77% and a return on equity of 36.53%. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.94 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Timmi Zalatoris sold 2,000 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.38, for a total value of $328,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 13,263 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,180,171.94. The trade was a 13.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Nicholas Konat sold 20,270 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.50, for a total transaction of $3,395,225.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 55,675 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,325,562.50. The trade was a 26.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 70,725 shares of company stock worth $11,511,003. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.