Allianz Asset Management GmbH Sells 107,612 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Allianz Asset Management GmbH lowered its position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 14.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 635,955 shares of the company’s stock after selling 107,612 shares during the quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH owned 0.64% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $80,811,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 2.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,484,059 shares of the company’s stock worth $275,634,000 after purchasing an additional 56,161 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 13.1% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,349,694 shares of the company’s stock valued at $149,020,000 after buying an additional 156,175 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 94.9% during the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 1,298,768 shares of the company’s stock worth $165,034,000 after acquiring an additional 632,523 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 983,257 shares of the company’s stock valued at $108,561,000 after acquiring an additional 48,103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. increased its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 1.5% in the third quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 698,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,122,000 after acquiring an additional 10,326 shares during the period.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

Shares of SFM stock opened at $143.32 on Friday. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 52 week low of $52.57 and a 52 week high of $178.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.33 billion, a PE ratio of 41.42, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.63. 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’s fifty day moving average is $148.11 and its 200-day moving average is $129.61.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.96 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 4.73% and a return on equity of 28.24%. Equities research analysts expect that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SFM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group raised their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $132.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Bank of America upped their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $174.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $152.40.

Insider Activity

In other news, 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 $2,700,629.01. This represents a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Douglas Gregory Rauch sold 700 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.89, for a total value of $104,223.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,619,029.86. The trade was 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 over the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.