Rhumbline Advisers Purchases 3,600 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 1.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 314,416 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,600 shares during the quarter. Rhumbline Advisers owned 0.32% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $47,992,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. GeoWealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 115.4% in the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 265 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 84.1% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 289 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 111.3% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 319 shares of the company's stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the fourth quarter worth approximately $51,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on SFM shares. Bank of America increased their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Northcoast Research upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $185.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $160.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Nine 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, Sprouts Farmers Market currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $167.79.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 2,915 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.36, for a total value of $435,384.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 189,315 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,276,088.40. This trade represents a 1.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Timmi Zalatoris sold 775 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.42, for a total value of $106,500.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,943 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,190,887.06. This represents a 4.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 145,825 shares of company stock valued at $21,813,320. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Performance

SFM stock traded down $3.02 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $168.12. The stock had a trading volume of 1,610,274 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,456,106. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 52 week low of $74.15 and a 52 week high of $182.00. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $162.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $152.19. 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 issued 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. The firm 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%. Sprouts Farmers Market's quarterly revenue was up 18.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.12 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 earnings per share 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.