Cynosure Group LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Key Points

• Cynosure Group LLC increased its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. by 104.4% in the first quarter, bringing its total ownership to 5,040 shares valued at approximately $769,000.
• Recent analyst upgrades include Wells Fargo raising its rating from "equal weight" to "overweight," and setting a price target of $180.00, while Evercore ISI elevated their target from $180.00 to $185.00.
• Sprouts Farmers Market reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.35, beating the consensus estimate by $0.12, with revenues of $2.22 billion, up 17.3% year-over-year.

Cynosure Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 104.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,040 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,574 shares during the period. Cynosure Group LLC's holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $769,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 92.0% in the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 192 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the first quarter valued at about $30,000. GeoWealth Management LLC increased 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 worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 111.3% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 319 shares of the company's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the period. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 100.9% during the first quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 454 shares of the company's stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares during the period.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Joseph D. O'leary sold 2,937 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.07, for a total value of $440,755.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 14,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,250,149.58. The trade was a 16.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 4,045 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.76, for a total transaction of $634,094.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 174,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $27,392,242.40. This trade represents a 2.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 67,225 shares of company stock valued at $10,950,283 in the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of SFM traded down $1.17 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $146.67. The company had a trading volume of 1,867,871 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,735,977. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 12-month low of $95.25 and a 12-month high of $182.00. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $160.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $158.76. The company has a market capitalization of $14.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.15, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.78.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.16 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 5.77% and a return on equity of 36.53%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.94 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on SFM. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $175.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. UBS Group set a $180.00 price target on Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen raised Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $173.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Roth Capital set a $155.00 target price on Sprouts Farmers Market and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sprouts Farmers Market currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $172.20.

Sprouts Farmers Market Company 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.