Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Given Average Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) has received an average rating of "Hold" from the ten ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $96.56.

SFM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on Sprouts Farmers Market in a report on Thursday. They issued a "sector perform" rating and a $107.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $84.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased 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. UBS Group boosted their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $68.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Roth Mkm increased their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $58.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ SFM traded up $0.37 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $102.10. The company had a trading volume of 891,440 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,347,385. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $93.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $79.10. Sprouts Farmers Market has a 52-week low of $39.50 and a 52-week high of $104.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock has a market cap of $10.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.21, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.56.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 29th. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.16. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 27.53% and a net margin of 4.52%. The company had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.71 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market will post 3.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 5,714 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.38, for a total value of $476,433.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 245,288 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,452,113.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, VP Stacy W. Hilgendorf sold 1,904 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total value of $192,532.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 10,237 shares in the company, valued at $1,035,165.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 5,714 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.38, for a total transaction of $476,433.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 245,288 shares in the company, valued at $20,452,113.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 128,939 shares of company stock valued at $12,571,295 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sprouts Farmers Market

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 18,717 shares of the company's stock worth $1,566,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC increased its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 3.8% during the first quarter. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC now owns 5,277 shares of the company's stock worth $340,000 after buying an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 11.7% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,987 shares of the company's stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV lifted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 7,149 shares of the company's stock valued at $344,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 223.5% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 317 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the last quarter.

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.