Hancock Whitney Corp Sells 53,922 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. $SFM

Key Points

• Hancock Whitney Corp reduced its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. by 29.0%, selling 53,922 shares and owning 131,828 shares worth $20,122,000 as of the end of the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors, including Bank of America and Brevan Howard Capital Management, have recently adjusted their holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, with significant increases in their stakes.
• Analysts have shown positive sentiment towards Sprouts Farmers Market, with Wells Fargo and Barclays upgrading their ratings and setting target prices between $180.00 and $185.00.

Hancock Whitney Corp lowered its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 29.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 131,828 shares of the company's stock after selling 53,922 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp owned approximately 0.13% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $20,122,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SFM. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 901,150 shares of the company's stock valued at $114,509,000 after acquiring an additional 123,247 shares in the last quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP grew its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 160.4% in the fourth quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 8,628 shares of the company's stock worth $1,096,000 after purchasing an additional 5,314 shares during the period. Centiva Capital LP bought a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market in the fourth quarter valued at $2,240,000. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 107,703 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,686,000 after purchasing an additional 2,815 shares during the period. Finally, Driehaus Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 942,785 shares of the company's stock worth $119,800,000 after purchasing an additional 46,258 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Activity at Sprouts Farmers Market

In related news, insider Timmi Zalatoris sold 2,000 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction that occurred 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 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 SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph D. O'leary sold 2,937 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.07, for a total value of $440,755.59. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 14,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,250,149.58. This trade represents a 16.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,737 shares of company stock valued at $5,954,023 in the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on SFM. Wells Fargo & Company raised Sprouts Farmers Market from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $175.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. UBS Group set a $180.00 target price on Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $159.00 price target for the company. Barclays upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $173.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $173.73.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

SFM opened at $138.34 on Thursday. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $96.05 and a fifty-two week high of $182.00. The company's 50-day moving average is $154.48 and its 200 day moving average is $156.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.47, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.86.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 36.53% and a net margin of 5.77%.Sprouts Farmers Market'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. Sprouts Farmers Market has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.200-5.320 EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at 1.120-1.160 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Sprouts Farmers Market declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, August 19th that permits the company to buyback $0.00 in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.

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