Parallel Advisors LLC Increases Stake in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 16.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 3,270 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 455 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $416,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 2.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,484,059 shares of the company’s stock valued at $275,634,000 after buying an additional 56,161 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 13.1% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,349,694 shares of the company’s stock valued at $149,020,000 after acquiring an additional 156,175 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. grew its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 94.9% in the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 1,298,768 shares of the company’s stock valued at $165,034,000 after purchasing an additional 632,523 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 987,093 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,430,000 after purchasing an additional 3,836 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 1.5% in the third quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 698,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,122,000 after purchasing an additional 10,326 shares during the last quarter.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Up 1.9 %

Sprouts Farmers Market stock opened at $142.39 on Friday. 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 $61.61 and a 12 month high of $178.99. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $150.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $135.50. The firm has a market cap of $14.04 billion, a PE ratio of 37.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.67.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $163.00 to $190.00 in a report on Monday, March 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $132.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective 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. Finally, Roth Mkm boosted their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sprouts Farmers Market has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $162.92.

Insider Transactions at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other news, VP Stacy W. Hilgendorf sold 229 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.43, for a total value of $31,929.47. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 10,226 shares in the company, valued at $1,425,811.18. This trade represents a 2.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Timmi Zalatoris sold 1,065 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.97, for a total value of $143,743.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 9,830 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,326,755.10. This trade represents a 9.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 83,501 shares of company stock valued at $11,616,851 in the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.