Nuveen Asset Management LLC Purchases 75,312 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 12.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 664,923 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 75,312 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned 0.66% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $84,492,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SFM. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. GeoWealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 93.5% in the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 269 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 84.1% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 289 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the fourth quarter worth $51,000.

Insider Activity at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, VP Stacy W. Hilgendorf sold 890 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.42, for a total value of $122,303.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 9,347 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,284,464.74. The trade was a 8.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joe Fortunato sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.80, for a total transaction of $724,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 28,571 shares in the company, valued at $4,137,080.80. This represents a 14.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 126,362 shares of company stock valued at $18,430,847. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Down 2.0%

SFM stock traded down $3.34 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $164.68. 1,140,446 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,445,261. The stock has a market cap of $16.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.59. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 1 year low of $74.15 and a 1 year high of $178.99. The firm's 50 day moving average is $157.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $150.21.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 firm had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.20 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 4.93% and a return on equity of 29.86%. The business's revenue was up 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.12 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $119.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $163.00 to $190.00 in a report on Monday, March 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased 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 note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Roth Capital set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $167.79.

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.