Quantbot Technologies LP Sells 12,720 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Quantbot Technologies LP lessened its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 29.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 31,046 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,720 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $3,428,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SFM. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 167.4% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,555,192 shares of the company’s stock valued at $130,107,000 after purchasing an additional 973,666 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 15.4% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 4,438,144 shares of the company’s stock worth $371,295,000 after buying an additional 593,600 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 2,577.7% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 452,672 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,980,000 after buying an additional 435,767 shares during the last quarter. Fiera Capital Corp purchased a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,712,000. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 41.3% in the 2nd quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 804,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,271,000 after acquiring an additional 235,100 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Activity at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, insider Dustin Hamilton sold 1,997 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.20, for a total transaction of $198,102.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 26,172 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,596,262.40. This trade represents a 7.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph L. Hurley sold 4,956 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.66, for a total transaction of $657,462.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,483,669.44. This trade represents a 30.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 36,516 shares of company stock valued at $4,465,466 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Performance

Shares of SFM stock opened at $151.97 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $124.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $100.64. The stock has a market cap of $15.20 billion, a PE ratio of 43.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.54. 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 12 month low of $41.27 and a 12 month high of $154.55.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.14. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 4.73% and a return on equity of 28.24%. The business had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.88 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.65 earnings per share. Sprouts Farmers Market’s quarterly revenue was up 13.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SFM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $102.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $107.00 price objective on the stock. Melius Research started coverage on Sprouts Farmers Market in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $105.00 target price for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $127.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $115.40.

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.