Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Raises Stock Position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. $SFM

Key Points

• The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its shareholding in Sprouts Farmers Market by 58.7%, owning approximately 0.26% of the company worth around $38.66 million after acquiring 93,700 additional shares.
• CEO Jack Sinclair sold 4,045 shares of the company, resulting in a 2.26% decrease in his ownership, while insider sales totaled 35,970 shares in the last three months.
• Sprouts Farmers Market reported a 17.3% increase in revenue year-over-year, with a quarterly EPS of $1.35, exceeding estimates by $0.12, and forecasted its FY 2025 EPS guidance between 5.200-5.320.

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 58.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 253,300 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 93,700 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned 0.26% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $38,664,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of SFM. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 1,033.4% in the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,476,351 shares of the company's stock valued at $225,350,000 after purchasing an additional 1,346,097 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 300.3% in the first 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 bought a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market during the first quarter worth $106,852,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP acquired a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 1st quarter valued at about $71,699,000. Finally, Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC acquired a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market during the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,946,000.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sprouts Farmers Market

In related news, Director Joseph D. O'leary sold 2,937 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.07, for a total transaction of $440,755.59. Following the sale, the director directly owned 14,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,250,149.58. This represents a 16.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Timmi Zalatoris sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.38, for a total transaction of $328,760.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 13,263 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,180,171.94. This represents a 13.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,737 shares of company stock valued at $5,954,023 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SFM. Barclays raised Sprouts Farmers Market from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $173.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Sprouts Farmers Market from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $175.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $190.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, UBS Group set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $173.73.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:SFM traded up $0.46 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $138.80. The company's stock had a trading volume of 899,948 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,722,787. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $154.48 and a 200-day moving average of $156.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.57, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.86. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 12-month low of $97.61 and a 12-month high of $182.00.

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 for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.12. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 5.77% and a return on equity of 36.53%. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.94 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. 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, research analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 EPS for the current year.

Sprouts Farmers Market declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, August 19th that permits the company to repurchase $0.00 in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is 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.