Barclays PLC Boosts Holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 128.3% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 199,035 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 111,838 shares during the period. Barclays PLC’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $21,975,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Crewe Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 223.5% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 317 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the third quarter worth about $38,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 80.6% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 363 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares in the last quarter.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Performance

Shares of SFM stock opened at $147.79 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 firm has a market cap of $14.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.58. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $135.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $106.98. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a one year low of $46.74 and a one year high of $155.64.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.14. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 28.24% and a net margin of 4.73%. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.88 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.65 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 13.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.68 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 5,714 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.41, for a total value of $642,310.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 211,004 shares in the company, valued at $23,718,959.64. The trade was a 2.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph D. O’leary sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.11, for a total value of $52,538.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 17,991 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,700,629.01. The trade was a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 59,855 shares of company stock worth $8,323,697 in the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on SFM. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $90.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com raised Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 28th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $102.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sprouts Farmers Market currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $118.40.

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.