Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Stock Now Rated “Hold” by Sell-Side Analysts

Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the fifteen analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have given a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $64.77.

SFM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $95.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $84.00 to $77.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 25th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $100.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Zacks Research downgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $74.00 price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Monday, October 26th.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

SFM stock opened at $54.40 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Sprouts Farmers Market has a 12 month low of $47.35 and a 12 month high of $94.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.76. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $67.86 and a 200-day moving average of $75.88.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by ($0.01). Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 5.45% and a return on equity of 33.83%. The firm had revenue of $2.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.33 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.22 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market will post 4.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, Director Joseph D. O’leary sold 2,597 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.57, for a total value of $214,434.29. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 14,710 shares in the company, valued at $1,214,604.70. This represents a 15.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 10,788 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.48, for a total value of $695,610.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 269,980 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,408,310.40. This represents a 3.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 35,253 shares of company stock valued at $2,523,984. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Sprouts Farmers Market

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SFM. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $768,171,000. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 1st quarter worth $121,906,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC purchased a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market during the second quarter valued at $131,310,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 2nd quarter valued at about $93,790,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market in the 2nd quarter worth about $55,713,000.

About Sprouts Farmers Market

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc (NASDAQ:SFM) is a specialty grocery retailer focused on fresh, natural and organic foods. Its stores offer a broad selection of fresh produce, meat and seafood, dairy products, bulk foods, vitamins and supplements, pantry staples, bakery items, deli products and prepared foods. The company emphasizes products that support healthy eating, including organic, plant-based and specialty-diet options.

Founded in 2002, Sprouts Farmers Market grew from its first store in Chandler, Arizona, into a national grocery chain.