Trexquant Investment LP Boosts Stock Position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Trexquant Investment LP grew its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) by 696.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 108,084 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 94,516 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP owned approximately 0.11% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $5,200,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Xponance Inc. boosted its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 14,976 shares of the company's stock valued at $720,000 after buying an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Baldwin Brothers LLC MA raised its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 20.0% in the 4th quarter. Baldwin Brothers LLC MA now owns 1,260 shares of the company's stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Connors Investor Services Inc. grew its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Connors Investor Services Inc. now owns 58,125 shares of the company's stock worth $2,488,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 8,470 shares of the company's stock valued at $407,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares during the period. Finally, Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 6,676 shares of the company's stock valued at $321,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SFM. Bank of America upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $30.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $48.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $31.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $57.25.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Brandon F. Lombardi sold 22,799 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.98, for a total value of $1,367,484.02. Following the sale, the insider now owns 8,328 shares of the company's stock, valued at $499,513.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, insider David Mcglinchey sold 12,219 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.01, for a total value of $904,328.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 25,007 shares in the company, valued at $1,850,768.07. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brandon F. Lombardi sold 22,799 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.98, for a total transaction of $1,367,484.02. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 8,328 shares in the company, valued at approximately $499,513.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 210,567 shares of company stock valued at $13,722,524 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Up 1.9 %

NASDAQ:SFM traded up $1.52 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $80.69. 1,836,637 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,344,765. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company has a market cap of $8.11 billion, a PE ratio of 27.30, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.50. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $67.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $56.04. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a one year low of $32.12 and a one year high of $80.96.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.85 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 4.25% and a return on equity of 26.77%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.98 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.11 earnings per share for the current year.

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.