Blue Trust Inc. Raises Holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 84.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,213 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,467 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $355,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 223.5% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 317 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Quarry LP increased its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 1,425.8% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 473 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 442 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 26.3% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 605 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock opened at $118.85 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $11.90 billion, a PE ratio of 37.26, a P/E/G ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.76 and a fifty-two week high of $118.90. The business’s fifty day moving average is $106.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $88.65.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 27.53% and a net margin of 4.52%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.71 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Dustin Hamilton sold 921 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.60, for a total transaction of $104,625.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 25,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,868,513.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Dustin Hamilton sold 921 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction on Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.60, for a total value of $104,625.60. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 25,251 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,868,513.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Hari K. Avula sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.50, for a total value of $241,250.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 10,554 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,018,461. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 124,142 shares of company stock valued at $12,401,112. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on SFM. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $62.00 to $90.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $111.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $63.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $68.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $102.40.

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.