Algert Global LLC Sells 14,440 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Algert Global LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 28.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 37,100 shares of the company’s stock after selling 14,440 shares during the quarter. Algert Global LLC’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $4,096,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,917 shares of the company’s stock valued at $322,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 1.9% in the third quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 5,477 shares of the company’s stock valued at $605,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 26.3% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 605 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 18,717 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,566,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $402,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on SFM. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $107.00 price target for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $63.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Roth Mkm lifted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $58.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $90.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $127.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $115.40.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SFM opened at $147.98 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $122.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $99.58. The stock has a market cap of $14.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.77, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 12 month low of $41.27 and a 12 month high of $149.89.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.88 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 4.73% and a return on equity of 28.24%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.65 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Sprouts Farmers Market

In related news, insider John Scott Neal sold 6,535 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.29, for a total transaction of $668,465.15. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 14,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,462,030.97. This represents a 31.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 5,714 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.60, for a total transaction of $757,676.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 199,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,463,777.60. This represents a 2.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 43,051 shares of company stock worth $5,133,932 over the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.