Boston Trust Walden Corp Reduces Stock Holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Boston Trust Walden Corp lessened its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 96.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 24,771 shares of the company’s stock after selling 691,900 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $3,148,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 28,659 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,642,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust boosted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 6,715 shares of the company’s stock worth $853,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,649 shares of the company’s stock valued at $845,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 3,849 shares of the company’s stock worth $489,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 3.6% in the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,917 shares of the company’s stock worth $322,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on SFM. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $102.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Bank of America upped their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com upgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sprouts Farmers Market presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $119.40.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

Shares of SFM opened at $165.85 on Wednesday. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $143.12 and a 200-day moving average price of $122.91. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $49.81 and a fifty-two week high of $166.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.58 billion, a PE ratio of 47.93, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.63.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Joseph D. O’leary sold 350 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.11, for a total value 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. The trade was a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.24, for a total transaction of $4,477,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 163,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,454,764.88. The trade was a 15.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 39,699 shares of company stock valued at $5,835,352 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Sprouts Farmers Market 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.