Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM – Free Report) by 12,554.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 108,951 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 108,090 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $8,403,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SFM. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,913,415 shares of the company’s stock valued at $789,802,000 after purchasing an additional 28,951 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,115,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $248,174,000 after purchasing an additional 71,905 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 137.0% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,584,923 shares of the company’s stock worth $425,582,000 after purchasing an additional 1,494,014 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 51.0% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,098,249 shares of the company’s stock worth $167,168,000 after purchasing an additional 708,529 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market during the fourth quarter worth $161,398,000.
Sprouts Farmers Market News Roundup
Here are the key news stories impacting Sprouts Farmers Market this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter earnings beat expectations. Sprouts reported adjusted EPS of $1.37, above the $1.35 consensus and matching the prior-year quarter. Revenue rose 4.7% year over year to $2.33 billion, broadly in line with or slightly ahead of estimates. Sprouts Farmers Market quarterly earnings report
- Positive Sentiment: Growth initiatives helped offset weaker comparable-store sales. New-store openings, e-commerce and private-label offerings supported results, while broader consumer demand for healthy and convenient foods is benefiting the natural-foods sector. Sprouts Farmers Q2 earnings analysis
- Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan upgraded SFM to Overweight and raised its price target to $103 from $80. The action signals increased confidence in Sprouts’ earnings potential and provides a significant premium to recent trading levels. JPMorgan Sprouts analyst upgrade
- Positive Sentiment: Valuation and returns may appeal to investors. One analysis describes the stock as potentially below fair value while highlighting strong returns, including a reported return on equity above 35%. Sprouts stock fair value analysis
- Neutral Sentiment: Options activity was unusually high. Investors purchased approximately 3,951 put options, 34% above average. This may reflect hedging or bearish positioning, but options volume alone does not establish a clear direction for the stock.
- Negative Sentiment: Management’s guidance trails Wall Street expectations. Full-year 2026 EPS guidance of $5.32–$5.40 is below the roughly $5.55–$5.57 consensus, while revenue guidance of $9.3–$9.4 billion is below the $9.5 billion estimate. Third-quarter EPS guidance of $1.20–$1.24 also falls short of the $1.30 consensus. Why Sprouts stock is moving higher
Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Performance
Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.02. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 34.84% and a net margin of 5.58%.The business had revenue of $2.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.35 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sprouts Farmers Market has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.200-1.240 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 5.320-5.400 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 5.49 EPS for the current year.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
SFM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $80.00 to $103.00 in a research report on Thursday. Melius Research downgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $70.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and issued a $84.00 price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a report on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $91.58.
Get Our Latest Research Report on SFM
Insider Buying and Selling at Sprouts Farmers Market
In other news, COO Nicholas Konat sold 12,538 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.90, for a total value of $1,102,090.20. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 66,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,811,860.10. This represents a 15.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 10,790 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.04, for a total transaction of $885,211.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 269,980 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,149,159.20. This represents a 3.84% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 44,904 shares of company stock worth $3,840,572. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.
Sprouts Farmers Market Company Profile
Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc (NASDAQ: SFM) is a specialty grocery retailer focused on fresh, natural and organic foods. Headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, the company operates stores designed to offer an open-market shopping experience, emphasizing quality produce sourced from regional farmers alongside organic pantry staples, dairy, meat and seafood. Sprouts’ product assortment also includes bulk foods, vitamins and supplements, a deli and prepared foods, reflecting its commitment to wellness and affordable healthy living.
Founded in 2002 by members of the Boney family, Sprouts began as a single farmers market in Chandler, Arizona.
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