Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Receives Average Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the fourteen research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $167.00.

SFM has been the topic of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $174.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $185.00 to $180.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th.

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Sprouts Farmers Market Trading Down 3.2 %

SFM traded down $5.06 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $153.28. 1,861,144 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,384,597. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.13. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $152.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $138.69. The firm has a market cap of $15.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.67. Sprouts Farmers Market has a 1 year low of $61.61 and a 1 year high of $178.99.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.07. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 29.86% and a net margin of 4.93%. The firm had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.96 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that Sprouts Farmers Market will post 4.29 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 2,915 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.54, for a total value of $488,379.10. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,669 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,070,304.26. This represents a 1.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Nicholas Konat sold 11,283 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.13, for a total transaction of $1,614,935.79. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 55,675 shares in the company, valued at $7,968,762.75. The trade was a 16.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 96,784 shares of company stock valued at $13,534,466. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sprouts Farmers Market

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 111.3% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 319 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 56.7% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 259,108 shares of the company's stock worth $32,925,000 after purchasing an additional 93,734 shares during the period. 111 Capital purchased a new position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,006,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 24.7% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,954 shares of the company's stock valued at $757,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178 shares during the period. Finally, Centaurus Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 1,466 shares of the company's stock worth $186,000 after buying an additional 113 shares in 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.