Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Shares Acquired by Empowered Funds LLC

Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 64,104 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,522 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $8,146,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SFM. Park Avenue Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the third quarter worth $280,000. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the third quarter valued at $218,000. CWM LLC grew its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 17.0% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,493 shares of the company’s stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 362 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 26.3% during the 3rd 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 period. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 18.4% in the 3rd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 19,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,195,000 after buying an additional 3,094 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SFM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $102.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $119.40.

Insider Activity

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 2,935 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.74, for a total transaction of $407,201.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 149,499 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,741,491.26. This trade represents a 1.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Douglas Gregory Rauch sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.89, for a total value of $104,223.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 10,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,619,029.86. This represents a 6.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 42,614 shares of company stock valued at $6,323,731 in the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Down 1.2 %

SFM opened at $167.97 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 52 week low of $50.12 and a 52 week high of $170.50. The business’s 50 day moving average is $144.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $124.72. The firm has a market cap of $16.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.63.

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.