Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) Sets New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $149.36 and last traded at $148.26, with a volume of 46132 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $147.13.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on SFM shares. Melius Research started coverage on Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $105.00 price objective for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $63.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $90.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Roth Mkm upped their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $58.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $115.40.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

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 stock has a market capitalization of $14.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a 50-day moving average of $122.58 and a 200-day moving average of $99.58.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Dustin Hamilton sold 1,997 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $2,596,262.40. The trade was a 7.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 5,714 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.60, for a total transaction of $757,676.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 199,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,463,777.60. This represents a 2.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 48,148 shares of company stock valued at $5,653,826. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Sprouts Farmers Market

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 15.4% in the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,484,059 shares of the company’s stock valued at $275,634,000 after purchasing an additional 56,161 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP raised its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 167.4% in the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,148,457 shares of the company’s stock valued at $96,080,000 after purchasing an additional 6,085 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,053,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $88,138,000 after purchasing an additional 28,636 shares in the last quarter.

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.