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

Shares of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the eleven research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $118.40.

SFM has been the subject of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $127.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $90.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Melius Research initiated coverage on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $105.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $102.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:SFM opened at $128.50 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market cap of $12.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.58. Sprouts Farmers Market has a 1-year low of $47.63 and a 1-year high of $155.64. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $138.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $110.25.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.88 billion. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 28.24% and a net margin of 4.73%. The business’s revenue was up 13.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.65 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market will post 3.68 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Dustin Hamilton sold 921 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.60, for a total value of $104,625.60. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 25,251 shares in the company, valued at $2,868,513.60. This represents a 3.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 5,714 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.41, for a total value of $642,310.74. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 211,004 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,718,959.64. This represents a 2.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 65,569 shares of company stock valued at $9,117,886. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sprouts Farmers Market

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 223.5% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 317 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the second quarter worth about $29,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market during the third quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Quarry LP raised its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 1,425.8% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 473 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 442 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.