Hancock Whitney Corp Sells 1,312 Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM)

Hancock Whitney Corp trimmed its position in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 193,826 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,312 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market were worth $21,400,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cetera Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market in the first quarter worth approximately $349,000. Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its stake in Sprouts Farmers Market by 59.8% in the second quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 16,790 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,405,000 after purchasing an additional 6,286 shares during the last quarter. SpiderRock Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market during the third quarter valued at about $3,252,000. Pinkerton Retirement Specialists LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the second quarter worth about $623,000. Finally, Caprock Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in the 2nd quarter valued at about $450,000.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Joe Fortunato sold 11,500 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were 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 directly owns 33,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,459,571.64. This trade represents a 25.52 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 5,714 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.60, for a total transaction of $757,676.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 199,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,463,777.60. This trade represents a 2.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 48,148 shares of company stock worth $5,653,826 in the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Up 0.9 %

NASDAQ:SFM opened at $148.47 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $122.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $99.58. The stock has a market cap of $14.85 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 current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 12 month low of $41.27 and a 12 month high of $148.56.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on SFM shares. 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $63.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of 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, Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $107.00 target price for the company. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sprouts Farmers Market presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $115.40.

Sprouts Farmers Market Company 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.