Joe Fortunato Sells 5,000 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Stock

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Director Joe Fortunato sold 5,000 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.80, for a total value of $724,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 28,571 shares in the company, valued at $4,137,080.80. This trade represents a 14.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SFM opened at $136.97 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $150.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $133.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.50 billion, a PE ratio of 36.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.67. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 52 week low of $60.46 and a 52 week high of $178.99.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.96 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 29.86% and a net margin of 4.93%. Analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SFM. Total Wealth Planning & Management Inc. acquired a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market during the fourth quarter worth approximately $613,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $14,198,000. Brucke Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the 4th quarter worth approximately $271,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 16.9% during the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 26,238 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,334,000 after acquiring an additional 3,788 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtue Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market during the 4th quarter valued at $996,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on SFM. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $140.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $174.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Bank of America increased their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.00.

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.