Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Director Sells $167,160.00 in Stock

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Director Douglas Gregory Rauch sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.16, for a total transaction of $167,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 8,598 shares in the company, valued at $1,437,241.68. This represents a 10.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Douglas Gregory Rauch also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, March 20th, Douglas Gregory Rauch sold 1,000 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.25, for a total transaction of $140,250.00.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:SFM traded up $0.25 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $168.93. The company had a trading volume of 876,366 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,447,170. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.93, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $156.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $150.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.59. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a one year low of $74.15 and a one year high of $178.99.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.20 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 4.93% and a return on equity of 29.86%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.12 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Roth Capital set a $155.00 target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group raised their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $195.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Northcoast Research upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $174.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $167.79.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sprouts Farmers Market

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,331,176 shares of the company’s stock worth $203,191,000 after purchasing an additional 36,548 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC acquired a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market during the 1st quarter valued at about $204,000. Axiom Investors LLC DE increased its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 50.9% in the first quarter. Axiom Investors LLC DE now owns 76,573 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,688,000 after purchasing an additional 25,834 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 1st quarter worth approximately $952,000. Finally, Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the first quarter valued at $633,000.

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.