Sprout Social, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPT) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Sprout Social, Inc. has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from twelve brokerage firms, with an average target price set at $27.36.
• Recent price targets for the stock were lowered by several analysts, including Oppenheimer, Canaccord Genuity, and Goldman Sachs, reflecting a more cautious outlook on the company's valuation.
• Insider trading activity showed a significant sale of shares by both the Director and CEO, indicating a decrease in their ownership positions amidst broader market volatility.

Sprout Social, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPT - Get Free Report) has received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $27.3636.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their target price on Sprout Social from $30.00 to $25.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Sprout Social from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $24.00 price target on shares of Sprout Social in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $32.00 price target on shares of Sprout Social in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Sprout Social from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th.

Insider Transactions at Sprout Social

In other news, Director Karen Walker sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.05, for a total transaction of $95,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 28,963 shares in the company, valued at $551,745.15. The trade was a 14.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Justyn Russell Howard sold 40,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.12, for a total value of $844,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 7,417 shares of the company's stock, valued at $156,647.04. The trade was a 84.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 112,375 shares of company stock worth $2,389,535 over the last three months. 10.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Sprout Social by 1,319.4% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,462 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 1,359 shares during the period. Quarry LP lifted its stake in shares of Sprout Social by 85.2% during the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,463 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 673 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sprout Social by 78.9% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,531 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in Sprout Social in the first quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Finally, CWM LLC raised its position in shares of Sprout Social by 266.3% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,934 shares of the company's stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 2,860 shares during the last quarter.

Sprout Social Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SPT traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $15.79. 860,310 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,018,623. Sprout Social has a 52 week low of $13.33 and a 52 week high of $36.30. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $17.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The company has a market cap of $928.61 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.62 and a beta of 0.99.

Sprout Social (NASDAQ:SPT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.03. Sprout Social had a negative net margin of 12.70% and a negative return on equity of 25.95%. The business had revenue of $111.78 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $110.93 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.09 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Sprout Social will post -0.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Sprout Social

Sprout Social, Inc designs, develops, and operates a web-based social media management platform in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company provides cloud software for social messaging, data and workflows in a unified system of record, intelligence, and action.