Dorsey Wright & Associates Raises Stake in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Dorsey Wright & Associates grew its position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 106.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 64,073 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 33,011 shares during the quarter. Sprouts Farmers Market makes up about 1.7% of Dorsey Wright & Associates’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Dorsey Wright & Associates owned approximately 0.06% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $7,074,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 223.5% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 317 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. purchased a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 1,425.8% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 473 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 442 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sprouts Farmers Market

In related news, insider Dustin Hamilton sold 1,997 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.20, for a total value of $198,102.40. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 26,172 shares in the company, valued at $2,596,262.40. This trade represents a 7.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph D. O’leary sold 350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.11, for a total transaction of $52,538.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 17,991 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,700,629.01. The trade was a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 31,152 shares of company stock worth $3,940,377. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on SFM. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $127.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Melius Research began coverage on Sprouts Farmers Market in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $105.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $90.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $102.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $107.00 target price for the company. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sprouts Farmers Market currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $118.40.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Performance

NASDAQ SFM opened at $151.04 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $15.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.58. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $45.29 and a fifty-two week high of $155.64. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $131.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $104.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.13.

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

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.