Caxton Associates LLP Makes New Investment in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. $SFM

Key Points

• Caxton Associates LLP invested $633,000 in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc., acquiring 4,150 shares, indicating institutional interest in the stock.
• Several other institutional investors, such as Dimensional Fund Advisors and Assenagon Asset Management, have also increased their holdings significantly in the company's stock recently.
• Sprouts Farmers Market reported a revenue increase of 17.3% compared to the previous year, with earnings per share of $1.35 for the last quarter, beating analyst expectations.

Caxton Associates LLP bought a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 4,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $633,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 0.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,217,900 shares of the company's stock worth $338,481,000 after purchasing an additional 15,930 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 1,033.4% in the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,476,351 shares of the company's stock valued at $225,350,000 after buying an additional 1,346,097 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 300.3% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,037,187 shares of the company's stock valued at $158,316,000 after buying an additional 778,079 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 1.0% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 997,152 shares of the company's stock valued at $152,205,000 after buying an additional 10,059 shares during the period. Finally, Driehaus Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 3.0% during the first quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 971,380 shares of the company's stock worth $148,271,000 after purchasing an additional 28,595 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Dustin Hamilton sold 7,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.95, for a total value of $1,000,440.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,271,693.55. This represents a 30.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 4,054 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.45, for a total value of $650,464.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 174,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $28,037,033. This represents a 2.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 43,368 shares of company stock valued at $6,545,125 in the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Down 1.3%

SFM stock traded down $1.74 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $135.98. 1,549,002 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,524,196. The company has a market cap of $13.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.86. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $151.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $155.56. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 52 week low of $101.72 and a 52 week high of $182.00.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 5.77% and a return on equity of 36.53%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.94 EPS. Sprouts Farmers Market has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.200-5.320 EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at 1.120-1.160 EPS. Analysts forecast that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Sprouts Farmers Market declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, August 19th that authorizes the company to buyback $0.00 in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on SFM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $159.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $190.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the company from $173.00 to $185.00 in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Sprouts Farmers Market has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $173.73.

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.