Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Stake Trimmed by Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. trimmed its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 9.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 197,797 shares of the company’s stock after selling 19,516 shares during the quarter. Sprouts Farmers Market comprises approximately 1.1% of Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. owned approximately 0.20% of Sprouts Farmers Market worth $25,134,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SFM. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 1,425.8% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 473 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 442 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 80.6% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 363 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Waldron Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the 3rd quarter valued at $60,000.

Insider Activity at Sprouts Farmers Market

In related news, Director Joe Fortunato sold 11,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.84, for a total transaction of $1,527,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 33,571 shares in the company, valued at $4,459,571.64. The trade was a 25.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph L. Hurley sold 4,956 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.66, for a total transaction of $657,462.96. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,483,669.44. This trade represents a 30.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 58,934 shares of company stock valued at $8,370,950. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Melius Research began coverage on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $105.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $107.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $127.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, StockNews.com raised Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $118.40.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock traded down $0.38 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $139.82. 493,471 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,333,446. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 52-week low of $48.98 and a 52-week high of $155.64. The company has a fifty day moving average of $141.33 and a 200-day moving average of $114.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.63.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.88 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 4.73% and a return on equity of 28.24%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.65 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.