Quantbot Technologies LP Increases Position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. $SFM

Key Points

• Quantbot Technologies LP significantly increased its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, acquiring an additional 42,003 shares, leading to a total of 72,743 shares, valued at approximately $11.1 million.
• Several large investors, including Whipplewood Advisors LLC and Brooklyn Investment Group, also dramatically increased their stakes in Sprouts Farmers Market during the first quarter.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” for Sprouts Farmers Market, with target prices ranging from $155 to $190.

Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 136.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 72,743 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 42,003 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP owned approximately 0.07% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $11,103,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SFM. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of 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. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 300.3% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,037,187 shares of the company's stock valued at $158,316,000 after buying an additional 778,079 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the 1st quarter valued at about $106,852,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP acquired a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the 1st quarter valued at about $71,699,000. Finally, Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the 4th quarter valued at about $53,946,000.

Insider Transactions at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 4,054 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owned 174,740 shares in the company, valued at $28,037,033. The trade was a 2.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Nicholas Konat sold 20,270 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was 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 owned 55,675 shares in the company, valued at $9,325,562.50. The trade was a 26.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 55,589 shares of company stock worth $8,926,483. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on SFM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Sprouts Farmers Market in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $159.00 target price for the company. UBS Group set a $180.00 target price on Sprouts Farmers Market in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $190.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Barclays upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the company from $173.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sprouts Farmers Market has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $173.73.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Up 2.6%

SFM stock traded up $3.81 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $151.06. 2,161,983 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,652,782. The stock has a market cap of $14.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.78. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $95.25 and a fifty-two week high of $182.00. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $158.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $158.39.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 36.53% and a net margin of 5.77%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.94 EPS. 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, analysts anticipate that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sprouts Farmers Market declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, August 19th that allows the company to repurchase $0.00 in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership 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.