Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Strong Sell”

Zacks Research lowered shares of Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning,Zacks reports.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on SFM. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Sprouts Farmers Market from $94.00 to $58.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $84.00 to $77.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada downgraded Sprouts Farmers Market from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $111.00 to $49.00 in a report on Thursday. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $74.00 price target on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $64.92.

Sprouts Farmers Market Price Performance

SFM opened at $49.70 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $69.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $76.29. The firm has a market cap of $4.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.54, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.67. Sprouts Farmers Market has a twelve month low of $47.35 and a twelve month high of $94.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.22 by ($0.01). Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 33.83% and a net margin of 5.45%. The firm had revenue of $2.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.33 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.22 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Sprouts Farmers Market will post 4.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sprouts Farmers Market news, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 10,788 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.80, for a total transaction of $936,398.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 269,980 shares in the company, valued at $23,434,264. This represents a 3.84% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Joseph O’Leary sold 2,597 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.57, for a total transaction of $214,434.29. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 14,710 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,214,604.70. This represents a 15.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 46,041 shares of company stock worth $3,460,383 over the last quarter. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sprouts Farmers Market

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SFM. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc bought a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the second quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Sprouts Farmers Market in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000.

Key Sprouts Farmers Market News

Here are the key news stories impacting Sprouts Farmers Market this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs maintained a Buy rating, while JPMorgan and Wells Fargo retained Overweight ratings. These firms still see potential upside from current levels, although all three sharply reduced their price targets. Goldman Sachs rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Goldman cut its target from $94 to $58, JPMorgan reduced its target from $90 to $58, and Wells Fargo lowered its target from $100 to $60. The continued bullish ratings provide some support, but the magnitude of the reductions signals a reset in expectations. JPMorgan price target
• Negative Sentiment: Sprouts missed third-quarter estimates, reporting adjusted EPS of $1.21 versus consensus of $1.22, while revenue also fell short. Analysts cited soft comparable-store sales and margin pressure. SFM Q3 earnings miss
• Negative Sentiment: Management reduced full-year 2026 EPS guidance to $4.80 from expectations of approximately $5.52 and forecast revenue of $9.2 billion versus consensus near $9.5 billion. Fourth-quarter EPS guidance of $0.47-$0.51 is particularly below the $1.21 analyst estimate.
• Negative Sentiment: Bank of America downgraded SFM to Underperform with a $47 target, while RBC moved the shares to Sector Perform. Commentary characterized the company’s challenges as structural rather than temporary, raising concerns about competitive pressure and the lack of near-term catalysts. Analyst views on Sprouts

About Sprouts Farmers Market

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc (NASDAQ:SFM) is a specialty grocery retailer focused on fresh, natural and organic foods. Its stores offer a broad selection of fresh produce, meat and seafood, dairy products, bulk foods, vitamins and supplements, pantry staples, bakery items, deli products and prepared foods. The company emphasizes products that support healthy eating, including organic, plant-based and specialty-diet options.

Founded in 2002, Sprouts Farmers Market grew from its first store in Chandler, Arizona, into a national grocery chain.