Polianta Ltd Takes Position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Polianta Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 8,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,327,000. Sprouts Farmers Market makes up about 0.6% of Polianta Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 1,033.4% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,476,351 shares of the company's stock worth $225,350,000 after acquiring an additional 1,346,097 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the fourth quarter worth about $143,113,000. Congress Asset Management Co. increased its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 94.9% during the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 1,298,768 shares of the company's stock worth $165,034,000 after buying an additional 632,523 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market during the 4th quarter worth approximately $64,117,000. Finally, Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC purchased a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market during the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,946,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $119.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Northcoast Research raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $185.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, February 28th. Roth Mkm upped their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $160.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped 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 note on Friday, February 21st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Sprouts Farmers Market presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $167.79.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 2,915 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.22, for a total value of $408,741.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 183,619 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,747,056.18. This trade represents a 1.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Timmi Zalatoris sold 736 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.45, for a total transaction of $101,163.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,575 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,865,883.75. This represents a 5.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 82,852 shares of company stock valued at $13,219,431 over the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Up 1.7%

Sprouts Farmers Market stock traded up $2.63 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $160.55. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,611,468 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,467,372. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.71 billion, a PE ratio of 42.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.81. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 1 year low of $76.31 and a 1 year high of $182.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock's fifty day moving average is $164.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $153.06.

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

About Sprouts Farmers Market

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.