Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) Rating Lowered to “Sell” at Melius Research

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) was downgraded by stock analysts at Melius Research from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, MarketBeat reports. They presently have a $70.00 target price on the stock. Melius Research’s price objective suggests a potential downside of 9.72% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on SFM. Evercore upgraded shares of Sprouts Farmers Market to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $88.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $140.00 to $114.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Sprouts Farmers Market from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $88.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $111.00 price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market in a research report on Friday, February 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $99.31.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Performance

NASDAQ SFM opened at $77.54 on Monday. Sprouts Farmers Market has a 12 month low of $64.75 and a 12 month high of $182.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $73.94 and a 200-day moving average of $84.17. The company has a market cap of $7.33 billion, a PE ratio of 14.63, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.67.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The company reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.03. Sprouts Farmers Market had a net margin of 5.95% and a return on equity of 38.21%. The business had revenue of $2.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.79 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sprouts Farmers Market has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.280-5.440 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.660-1.700 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Sprouts Farmers Market will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Sprouts Farmers Market

In related news, insider Timmi Zalatoris sold 426 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.52, for a total transaction of $33,449.52. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 13,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,024,293.40. This trade represents a 3.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Nicholas Konat sold 530 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.97, for a total transaction of $44,504.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 78,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,604,828.29. This trade represents a 0.67% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 129,750 shares of company stock valued at $10,566,838. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SFM. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 1,309.1% in the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 72.7% in the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 380 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter.

About Sprouts Farmers Market

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc (NASDAQ: SFM) is a specialty grocery retailer focused on fresh, natural and organic foods. Headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, the company operates stores designed to offer an open-market shopping experience, emphasizing quality produce sourced from regional farmers alongside organic pantry staples, dairy, meat and seafood. Sprouts’ product assortment also includes bulk foods, vitamins and supplements, a deli and prepared foods, reflecting its commitment to wellness and affordable healthy living.

Founded in 2002 by members of the Boney family, Sprouts began as a single farmers market in Chandler, Arizona.