Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Shares Sold by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd.

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. reduced its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 57.5%, resulting in ownership of 1,700 shares valued at $259,000.
• Insider Timmi Zalatoris sold 2,000 shares on July 1st, decreasing their ownership by 13.10%, while Director Joe Fortunato sold 10,000 shares on August 12th, reducing ownership by 35.51%.
• Sprouts Farmers Market recently reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.35, exceeding estimates, and projected EPS for the current year is expected to be 4.29.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. decreased its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 57.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,700 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,300 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd.'s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $259,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 92.0% during the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 192 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. GeoWealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 115.4% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 265 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 111.3% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 319 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 100.9% during the first quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 454 shares of the company's stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, insider Timmi Zalatoris sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.38, for a total value of $328,760.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 13,263 shares in the company, valued at $2,180,171.94. This trade represents a 13.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Joe Fortunato sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.57, for a total value of $1,475,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 18,164 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,680,461.48. This represents a 35.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 59,504 shares of company stock valued at $9,574,851 over the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Down 1.1%

SFM opened at $146.18 on Thursday. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 52 week low of $95.25 and a 52 week high of $182.00. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $160.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $158.67. The firm has a market cap of $14.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.78.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 revenue for the quarter was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.94 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on SFM shares. Roth Capital set a $155.00 target price on Sprouts Farmers Market and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $190.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Barclays upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $173.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $175.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $173.00 to $176.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sprouts Farmers Market presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $172.20.

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.

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