Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC Purchases 17,351 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 68.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 42,800 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 17,351 shares during the period. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $5,439,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Barclays PLC raised its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 128.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 199,035 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,975,000 after buying an additional 111,838 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $155,000. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 53,816 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,942,000 after purchasing an additional 3,372 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 25.8% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 464,366 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,551,000 after purchasing an additional 95,144 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $248,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Activity

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 49,898 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.42, for a total transaction of $6,856,983.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 189,449 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,034,081.58. This represents a 20.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Stacy W. Hilgendorf sold 2,247 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.00, for a total value of $388,731.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 7,979 shares in the company, 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. In the last quarter, insiders sold 100,736 shares of company stock valued at $14,253,272. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of SFM stock opened at $173.93 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $151.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $146.34. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 12-month low of $71.15 and a 12-month high of $178.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market cap of $17.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.27. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 4.93% and a return on equity of 29.86%. The company had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.12 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 18.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $160.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Roth Mkm boosted their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $174.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Northcoast Research raised Sprouts Farmers Market from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $168.77.

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.