Insider Selling: Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) VP Sells $31,929.47 in Stock

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) VP Stacy W. Hilgendorf sold 229 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.43, for a total value of $31,929.47. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 10,226 shares in the company, valued at $1,425,811.18. This trade represents a 2.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Up 1.9 %

Sprouts Farmers Market stock opened at $142.39 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $13.96 billion, a PE ratio of 37.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.13. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a one year low of $61.61 and a one year high of $178.99. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $150.88 and a 200 day moving average of $136.02.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.96 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 29.86% and a net margin of 4.93%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on SFM. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com raised Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $163.00 to $190.00 in a report on Monday, March 17th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $132.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Northcoast Research raised Sprouts Farmers Market from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $162.92.

Institutional Trading of Sprouts Farmers Market

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SFM. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 93.5% in the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 269 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC increased its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 115.4% in the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 265 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 84.1% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 289 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 80.6% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 363 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 162 shares in the last quarter.

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.