Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $31.32 Million Stake in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 26.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 283,699 shares of the company’s stock after selling 103,145 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $31,323,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market during the third quarter worth $25,000. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 223.5% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 317 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. bought a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Quarry LP raised its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 1,425.8% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 473 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 442 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Transactions at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, insider Dustin Hamilton sold 921 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.60, for a total transaction of $104,625.60. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 25,251 shares in the company, valued at $2,868,513.60. This represents a 3.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 5,714 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.41, for a total transaction of $642,310.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 211,004 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,718,959.64. The trade was a 2.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 65,569 shares of company stock valued at $9,117,886. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on SFM shares. StockNews.com raised Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $127.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of 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. Finally, 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 target price for the company. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sprouts Farmers Market currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $118.40.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Performance

SFM opened at $131.43 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $137.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $109.95. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 1 year low of $47.63 and a 1 year high of $155.64. The company has a market capitalization of $13.14 billion, a PE ratio of 37.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.58.

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