Bank of Montreal Can Decreases Stake in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Bank of Montreal Can lessened its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 35.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 57,895 shares of the company’s stock after selling 31,314 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $7,357,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of SFM. Polymer Capital Management US LLC acquired a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 4th quarter valued at about $614,000. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 66.6% in the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 381,168 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,435,000 after purchasing an additional 152,359 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 84,181 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,698,000 after purchasing an additional 19,750 shares during the last quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 14.7% in the fourth quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 2,591 shares of the company’s stock valued at $329,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 39.0% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 169,614 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,553,000 after acquiring an additional 47,571 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SFM. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $185.00 to $180.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $160.00 price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Nine equities 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 presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $167.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Timmi Zalatoris sold 1,065 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.97, for a total value of $143,743.05. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 9,830 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,326,755.10. The trade was a 9.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Stacy W. Hilgendorf sold 229 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.43, for a total value of $31,929.47. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 10,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,425,811.18. This trade represents a 2.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 99,699 shares of company stock worth $13,969,851. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

SFM opened at $157.27 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $151.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $141.30. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 52-week low of $61.61 and a 52-week high of $178.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company has a market cap of $15.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87.

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

Sprouts Farmers Market Company 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.