Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 84.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,045 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 2,311 shares during the quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC's holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $770,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 92.0% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 192 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $30,000. GeoWealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 115.4% during the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 265 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 111.3% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 319 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank purchased a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $63,000.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of SFM traded down $0.99 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $160.08. The company had a trading volume of 165,226 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,719,150. The company has a market capitalization of $15.67 billion, a PE ratio of 35.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a one year low of $84.24 and a one year high of $182.00. The company's fifty day moving average price is $164.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $157.97.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.27. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 34.20% and a net margin of 5.53%. The company had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 18.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on SFM shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $195.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $172.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Barclays initiated coverage on Sprouts Farmers Market in a report on Monday, July 21st. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $173.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $168.20.

Insider Activity at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 4,054 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.45, for a total value of $650,464.30. Following the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Nicholas Konat sold 20,270 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.50, for a total value of $3,395,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 55,675 shares in the company, valued at $9,325,562.50. This represents a 26.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 74,035 shares of company stock worth $12,213,719 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

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.