Lindenwold Advisors INC Reduces Position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Lindenwold Advisors INC lowered its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 25.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,808 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,664 shares during the period. Lindenwold Advisors INC’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $992,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Congress Asset Management Co. increased its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 94.9% in the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 1,298,768 shares of the company’s stock worth $165,034,000 after buying an additional 632,523 shares during the period. Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the fourth quarter worth $64,117,000. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the third quarter worth $18,259,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the fourth quarter worth $19,926,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 13.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,349,694 shares of the company’s stock valued at $149,020,000 after purchasing an additional 156,175 shares during the period.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Down 2.3 %

Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock opened at $137.81 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a twelve month low of $60.46 and a twelve month high of $178.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.59 billion, a PE ratio of 36.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.67. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $150.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $135.17.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.07. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 29.86% and a net margin of 4.93%. The business had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.96 billion. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, Director Joe Fortunato sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.80, for a total transaction of $724,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 28,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,137,080.80. The trade was a 14.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 2,935 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.74, for a total value 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 $20,741,491.26. This trade represents a 1.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,690 shares of company stock valued at $1,869,825 in the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SFM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Roth Mkm increased their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $174.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $163.00 to $190.00 in a report on Monday. StockNews.com raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $162.92.

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.