Curbstone Financial Management Corp Reduces Stock Position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Curbstone Financial Management Corp trimmed its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 4.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,660 shares of the company’s stock after selling 860 shares during the period. Curbstone Financial Management Corp’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $1,839,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 223.5% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 317 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. bought a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 1,425.8% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 473 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 442 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hanseatic Management Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the second quarter worth $63,000.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Dustin Hamilton sold 1,997 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.20, for a total value of $198,102.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 26,172 shares in the company, valued at $2,596,262.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, insider Timmi Zalatoris sold 56,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total transaction of $5,680,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 10,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,089,500. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Dustin Hamilton sold 1,997 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.20, for a total value of $198,102.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 26,172 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,596,262.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 117,507 shares of company stock valued at $11,654,176. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Up 0.3 %

SFM stock opened at $111.04 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.12 billion, a PE ratio of 38.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 1.03. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a one year low of $39.76 and a one year high of $111.96. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $100.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $83.19.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The company reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.16. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 4.52% and a return on equity of 27.53%. The company had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.71 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on SFM shares. Melius Research began coverage on Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $105.00 target price for the company. Bank of America lifted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $68.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $96.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $62.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $99.80.

Sprouts Farmers Market 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.