Mount Lucas Management LP Takes Position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Mount Lucas Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 3,882 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $593,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 142,041 shares of the company's stock worth $18,049,000 after buying an additional 6,850 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market during the 4th quarter worth about $2,605,000. LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 47.6% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 160,522 shares of the company's stock worth $20,398,000 after buying an additional 51,782 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,604,819 shares of the company's stock worth $1,347,554,000 after buying an additional 56,652 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 106.4% during the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 47,649 shares of the company's stock worth $6,055,000 after buying an additional 24,567 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of 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. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $172.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $195.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Roth Capital set a $155.00 price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $168.20.

Insider Transactions at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 4,045 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.94, for a total value of $659,092.30. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 174,740 shares in the company, valued at $28,472,135.60. This trade represents a 2.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Douglas Gregory Rauch sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.16, for a total transaction of $167,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 8,598 shares in the company, valued at $1,437,241.68. This represents a 10.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 74,035 shares of company stock valued at $12,213,719. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SFM traded down $3.33 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $161.07. 1,063,464 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,048,378. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.95. The company has a market cap of $15.76 billion, a PE ratio of 36.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.77. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $164.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $157.85. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 1-year low of $84.24 and a 1-year high of $182.00.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.20 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 5.53% and a return on equity of 34.20%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.12 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 EPS 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.