Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 33.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,073 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 6,550 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.'s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $3,980,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Highland Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the first quarter worth $290,000. Vista Investment Partners II LLC raised its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 6.7% in the first quarter. Vista Investment Partners II LLC now owns 33,721 shares of the company's stock worth $5,147,000 after buying an additional 2,122 shares in the last quarter. Matisse Capital raised its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 23.3% in the first quarter. Matisse Capital now owns 20,668 shares of the company's stock worth $3,155,000 after buying an additional 3,900 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 5.1% in the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,851 shares of the company's stock worth $588,000 after buying an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the first quarter worth $226,000.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Nicholas Konat sold 20,270 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 29th. The shares were 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 directly owned 55,675 shares in the company, valued at $9,325,562.50. The trade was a 26.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Stacy W. Hilgendorf sold 2,247 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.00, for a total transaction of $388,731.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 7,979 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,380,367. The trade was a 21.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 72,905 shares of company stock worth $11,990,011 over the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Down 3.0%

Shares of SFM stock traded down $4.96 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $159.23. 884,116 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,561,634. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $165.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $154.98. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 12-month low of $79.34 and a 12-month high of $182.00. The stock has a market cap of $15.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.78, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.27. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 5.53% and a return on equity of 34.20%. The firm had revenue of $2.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.20 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.12 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on SFM shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Roth Capital set a $155.00 price target on Sprouts Farmers Market and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $163.00 to $190.00 in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $167.79.

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.