Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Shares Acquired by Forte Capital LLC ADV

Forte Capital LLC ADV increased its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 104,425 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 621 shares during the quarter. Sprouts Farmers Market makes up approximately 1.5% of Forte Capital LLC ADV’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Forte Capital LLC ADV owned about 0.10% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $13,269,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 13.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,349,694 shares of the company’s stock worth $149,020,000 after purchasing an additional 156,175 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the third quarter worth approximately $13,348,000. SpiderRock Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the third quarter worth approximately $3,252,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 5.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 983,257 shares of the company’s stock worth $108,561,000 after purchasing an additional 48,103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Hawaiian Bank purchased a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 4th quarter valued at $1,517,000.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

SFM opened at $169.80 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $148.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $129.27. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 12-month low of $52.24 and a 12-month high of $178.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market cap of $16.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.08, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.63.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.07. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 28.24% and a net margin of 4.73%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on SFM shares. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. BMO Capital Markets upped 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. StockNews.com upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Bank of America upped their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $134.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, Director Joseph D. O’leary sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.11, for a total value of $52,538.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 17,991 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,700,629.01. This trade represents a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 2,915 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.54, for a total value of $488,379.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,669 shares in the company, valued at $24,070,304.26. This represents a 1.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 42,614 shares of company stock valued at $6,323,731. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.