Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Increases Stock Position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Key Points

• Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 16.2%, acquiring an additional 5,854 shares and bringing their total holdings to 41,895 shares valued at approximately $6.4 million.
• Sprouts Farmers Market reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $1.35 for the latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.23, with revenue rising by 17.3% year-over-year.
• Brokerage ratings on the stock show ten analysts with a hold rating and six issuing buy ratings, with the average target price set at $167.27.

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 16.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 41,895 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,854 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank's holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $6,395,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 1,033.4% in the 1st 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 during the last quarter. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC bought a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $53,946,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 18,234.0% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 358,246 shares of the company's stock worth $54,683,000 after buying an additional 356,292 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 22.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,582,896 shares of the company's stock worth $201,139,000 after acquiring an additional 294,553 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Man Group plc raised its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 204.7% during the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 289,929 shares of the company's stock worth $36,841,000 after acquiring an additional 194,792 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $173.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen raised Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $190.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Thursday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $171.53.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Performance

SFM traded up $2.54 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $154.08. 2,044,686 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,362,586. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 1 year low of $91.36 and a 1 year high of $182.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.06 billion, a PE ratio of 31.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $163.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $158.31.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 net margin of 5.77% and a return on equity of 36.53%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.94 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 4,054 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.45, for a total value of $650,464.30. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 174,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $28,037,033. The trade was a 2.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Joseph D. O'leary sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.40, for a total transaction of $318,800.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 17,931 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,858,201.40. This represents a 10.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 65,743 shares of company stock valued at $10,769,633. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.