Out Fox The $treet

Sprouts Farmers Market crushed Q4 estimates while the stock ironically traded towards the post-IPO lows. The company benefits from a focus on affordable produce and reasonable margins to drive traffic growth. The stock is recommended long-term holding, but investors shouldn't chase the stock higher at the current levels. Over the last six months, I encouraged investors on multiple occasions to not view  Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ: SFM )  so negatively ( here  and  here ). Outside of the flash crash, the stock traded down to $20 on two occasions providing attractive entry points.  Read the full article on Seeking Alpha.  Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please read the disclaimer page for more details.

Summary Sprouts disappoints with Q1'15 earnings. Sales and margins were hurt by the West Coast port slowdown. The natural grocer is still generating solid comp sales growth and maintains a long-term growth opportunity suggesting buying the stock on a dip.    Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ: SFM ) reported quarterly numbers after the close on Thursday that missed analyst and company forecasts. Probably even worse, the disappointing numbers came after the leading pre-IPO shareholder in Apollo Global Management (NYSE: APO ) dumped their final shares in early March at $35.30. The stock is likely to trade weak with concerns that the "insiders" knew of the impending weakness.  Read the full article on Seeking Alpha.   Disclosure: No positions mentioned.  Please read the disclaimer page for more details.

In the very competitive organic and fresh food segment, Sprouts Farmers Market ( NASDAQ: SFM     ) continues to outpace the industry by delivering healthy food at a value to the consumer. While the company doesn't focus as much on the expensive side of organic foods, it is delivering huge growth from pulling in everyday grocery shoppers that don't want the more expensive products from Whole Foods Market ( NASDAQ: WFM     ) Companies in the sector, including The Fresh Market ( NASDAQ: TFM     ) , have all been hit hard recently. At these times, investors need to focus more on the substance of the earning reports and less on the headlines and stock gyrations. Large stock dips can offer attractive entry points. Read full article here . Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please read the disclaimer page for more details.

Typically, when large insiders unload shares, investors need to be careful that the original investors are not cashing out at the top. In the case of Sprouts Farmers Market ( NASDAQ: SFM     ) , the recent unloading of shares by major insider Apollo Global Management ( NYSE: APO     ) is actually a good sign for new investors. Sprouts Farmers Market is a specialty retailer of fresh, natural, and organic foods with a focus on great prices. The company operates roughly 170 stores in just nine states, with the ultimate goal of reaching 1,200 locations. Read the full article here . Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please review the disclaimer page for more details. 

Shareholders who only read the earnings headlines for the stocks they own are missing out: A ton of additional information can usually be gleaned from the related conference calls. For investors interested in the increasingly highly competitive fresh and organic market, Sprouts Farmer Market   ( NASDAQ: SFM     )  provided some solid numbers to digest during its recent third quarter. The organic chain, mostly located in the Southwest, has ample opportunities for a regional to national expansion plan. The stock, however, faces short-term pressure from a significant stock sale from its largest shareholder,  Apollo Global Management ( NYSE: APO     ). Additionally, mounting pressure continues to build in an industry that is becoming overly competitive based on reduced guidance from organic leader Whole Foods Market ( NASDAQ: WFM     ). Read the full article here . Disclosure: No position mentioned. Please review the discla...

Small Cap Insight After disappointing guidance, The Fresh Market ( TFM ) slumped 13% due in a large point to very high expectations for the grocery chain. Sure the organic and fresh grocer plays in a compelling secular trend, but it also faces a tough competitive environment with several companies raising significant funds to expand regional footprints. Not to mention the sector leader has made a big deal about driving down prices to produce growth. The company operates 136 stores in 26 states and expects to open 21 to 22 stores this year with a high concentration in Q3. With the U.S. supermarket listed as a $600 billion industry, Fresh Market has plenty of room to grow. The Nutrition Business Journal estimates that spending on the natural and organic sector has been growing at a rate of 10% annually with sales only reaching $43 billion in 2011. That growth rate would produce a total of just over $51 billion in 2013, but a number that wouldn't even reach 10% of...

EDITOR'S CHOICE After the 123% gain following the IPO, Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ: SFM ) appears to have sprouted too far for new investors. The company offers a compelling shopping experience and attractive pricing, but can it grow fast enough to justify a market cap exceeding $6 billion with revenue of only $2 billion last year. Sprouts competes in the fast growing and suddenly competitive natural and organic grocery sector against the likes more » Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please review the disclaimer page for more details. 

With the smashing success of the Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ: SFM ) IPO, one has to wonder if the Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage (NYSE: NGVC ) stock is undervalued. Natural Grocers has a faster growth rate and the stock didn’t have the same IPO pop. The company competes in the quickly growing natural and organic grocery sector against the likes of Sprouts, The Fresh Market (NASDAQ: TFM ) and Whole Foods more » Disclosure: No position mentioned. Please review the disclaimer page for more details.