Whole Foods Market, Inc. (WFM) Shares Sold by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. decreased its stake in Whole Foods Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:WFM) by 49.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 65,165 shares of the company’s stock after selling 64,346 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Whole Foods Market were worth $2,744,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WFM. Winslow Evans & Crocker Inc. boosted its position in shares of Whole Foods Market by 169.1% in the second quarter. Winslow Evans & Crocker Inc. now owns 3,428 shares of the company’s stock valued at $132,000 after buying an additional 2,154 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in shares of Whole Foods Market during the first quarter valued at approximately $105,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Whole Foods Market by 406.4% in the first quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,137 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,000 after buying an additional 3,320 shares during the last quarter. Baldwin Brothers Inc. MA bought a new position in shares of Whole Foods Market during the second quarter valued at approximately $190,000. Finally, Appleton Partners Inc. MA bought a new position in shares of Whole Foods Market during the second quarter valued at approximately $213,000. 89.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Whole Foods Market, Inc. (WFM) traded up 0.07% on Wednesday, hitting $41.79. 2,744,534 shares of the stock were exchanged. Whole Foods Market, Inc. has a one year low of $27.67 and a one year high of $43.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.27 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a 50 day moving average of $39.62 and a 200 day moving average of $33.99.

Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ:WFM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 10th. The company reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, hitting the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.37. Whole Foods Market had a net margin of 2.54% and a return on equity of 13.72%. The business had revenue of $3.74 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.44 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 99.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Whole Foods Market, Inc. will post $1.30 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This is a boost from Whole Foods Market’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 28th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.72%. Whole Foods Market’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.14%.

Whole Foods Market announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 10th that permits the company to repurchase $1.25 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 10.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS AG began coverage on shares of Whole Foods Market in a research report on Thursday, March 23rd. They set a “sell” rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $42.00 target price on shares of Whole Foods Market in a report on Tuesday. Vetr raised shares of Whole Foods Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $46.16 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Whole Foods Market from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $45.00 to $42.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 11th. Finally, BidaskClub raised shares of Whole Foods Market from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-two have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. The company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $37.42.

In other Whole Foods Market news, insider Juan Nunez sold 14,502 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.52, for a total value of $399,095.04. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,746 shares in the company, valued at $158,129.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Angela Lorenzen sold 1,431 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.34, for a total transaction of $52,002.54. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,131 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,100.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 18,466 shares of company stock valued at $543,688 in the last 90 days. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Whole Foods Market

Whole Foods Market, Inc is engaged in the business of natural and organic foods supermarket. The Company operates approximately 456 stores in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Its stores have an average size of approximately 39,000 square feet, and are supported by its distribution centers, bake house facilities, commissary kitchens, seafood-processing facilities, a produce procurement center, and a specialty coffee and tea procurement and roasting operation, among others.

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