Cerity Partners LLC Sells 6,724 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Cerity Partners LLC lowered its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 25.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 19,945 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,724 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC's holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $3,044,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Significant Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 14.7% during the first quarter. Significant Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,124 shares of the company's stock worth $324,000 after buying an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 105.2% in the first quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 18,827 shares of the company's stock worth $2,874,000 after buying an additional 9,651 shares during the period. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,492 shares of the company's stock valued at $533,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 175,633 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,821,000 after acquiring an additional 4,628 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Activity at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, VP Stacy W. Hilgendorf sold 2,247 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.00, for a total transaction of $388,731.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 7,979 shares in the company, valued at $1,380,367. This represents a 21.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider John Scott Neal sold 17,721 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.89, for a total transaction of $2,851,131.69. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 14,178 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,281,098.42. This trade represents a 55.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 74,035 shares of company stock worth $12,213,719 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SFM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group upped their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $195.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $173.00 target price (up previously from $172.00) on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Tuesday. Roth Capital set a $155.00 price target on Sprouts Farmers Market and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Sprouts Farmers Market currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $167.86.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Down 2.3%

Sprouts Farmers Market stock traded down $3.96 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $165.65. 1,180,830 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,574,969. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $164.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $156.93. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a twelve month low of $81.93 and a twelve month high of $182.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.21 billion, a PE ratio of 37.22, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.77.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.27. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 5.53% and a return on equity of 34.20%. The firm 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 company posted $1.12 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

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.