Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) Upgraded by Evercore ISI to Outperform

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Evercore ISI from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm presently has a $120.00 price objective on the stock, up from their previous price objective of $96.00. Evercore ISI's target price points to a potential upside of 12.56% from the company's previous close.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America raised their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Thursday. They issued a "sector perform" rating and a $107.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $40.00 to $102.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $63.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Roth Mkm raised their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $58.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $99.22.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SFM traded up $4.51 during trading on Monday, reaching $106.61. The stock had a trading volume of 1,838,621 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,350,141. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $93.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $79.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Sprouts Farmers Market has a 52 week low of $39.50 and a 52 week high of $107.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.56.

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

Insider Activity at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, insider Dustin Hamilton sold 1,997 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.20, for a total transaction of $198,102.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 26,172 shares in the company, valued at $2,596,262.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, VP Stacy W. Hilgendorf sold 1,904 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total value of $192,532.48. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 10,237 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,035,165.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Dustin Hamilton sold 1,997 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.20, for a total transaction of $198,102.40. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 26,172 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,596,262.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 128,939 shares of company stock valued at $12,571,295 over the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Sprouts Farmers Market

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SFM. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its holdings in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 0.8% in the second quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 18,717 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,566,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC raised its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 3.8% in the first quarter. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC now owns 5,277 shares of the company's stock worth $340,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 11.7% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,987 shares of the company's stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV grew its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 7,149 shares of the company's stock valued at $344,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC grew 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 purchasing an additional 219 shares during the last quarter.

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.