Janus Henderson Group PLC Sells 4,593 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Janus Henderson Group PLC cut its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 6.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 62,690 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,593 shares during the quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC owned about 0.06% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $7,965,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. GeoWealth Management LLC boosted its holdings 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 buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 93.5% in the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 269 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 84.1% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 289 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the fourth quarter valued at about $51,000.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Timmi Zalatoris sold 1,065 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.97, for a total transaction of $143,743.05. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,830 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,326,755.10. This trade represents a 9.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Joe Fortunato sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.80, for a total transaction of $724,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 28,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,137,080.80. The trade was a 14.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 126,362 shares of company stock worth $18,430,847. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on SFM shares. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $119.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. StockNews.com raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $167.79.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of SFM traded down $3.34 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $164.68. The stock had a trading volume of 1,140,446 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,445,261. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $74.15 and a fifty-two week high of $178.99. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $157.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $150.21. The firm has a market cap of $16.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.27. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 4.93% and a return on equity of 29.86%. The company had revenue of $2.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.20 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.12 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 EPS for the current year.

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.