Fulton Bank N.A. Lowers Holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Fulton Bank N.A. reduced its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 2.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 5,378 shares of the company’s stock after selling 146 shares during the period. Fulton Bank N.A.’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $683,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market during the third quarter worth about $25,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 80.6% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 363 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 1,425.8% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 473 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 442 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New Hampshire raised its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 520 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares in the last quarter.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Performance

Shares of SFM stock opened at $140.20 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $14.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.52, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.63. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $48.73 and a fifty-two week high of $155.64. 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 50 day moving average price of $141.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $114.04.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.88 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.65 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 3.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 33,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,459,571.64. The trade was a 25.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 5,714 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.99, for a total value of $794,188.86. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 158,148 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,980,990.52. The trade was a 3.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 58,934 shares of company stock worth $8,370,950 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SFM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Royal Bank of Canada started 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 target for the company. StockNews.com raised Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted 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. Melius Research assumed coverage on Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $105.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $102.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $118.40.

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.