Sprout Social (NASDAQ:SPT) Sets New 12-Month Low - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Sprout Social's stock has reached a new 12-month low, trading as low as $13.33, raising concerns among investors about whether it's time to sell.
• Analysts have significantly lowered their target prices, with estimates ranging from $21.00 to $25.00, reflecting a mixed consensus rating of "Hold."
• The company reported earnings of $0.18 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, but continues to face challenges with a negative return on equity of 25.95%.

Sprout Social, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPT - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $13.33 and last traded at $13.37, with a volume of 1115164 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $13.94.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SPT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their target price on Sprout Social from $30.00 to $25.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Sprout Social from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $24.00 target price on shares of Sprout Social in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Barclays reduced their price objective on Sprout Social from $34.00 to $26.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Sprout Social from $32.00 to $23.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $27.42.

Sprout Social Stock Performance

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 business has a 50-day simple moving average of $19.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $777.87 million, a PE ratio of -14.07 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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.03. Sprout Social had a negative return on equity of 25.95% and a negative net margin of 12.70%. The business had revenue of $111.78 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $110.93 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.09 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Sprout Social, Inc. will post -0.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Trading of Sprout Social

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Sprout Social by 1,319.4% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,462 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 1,359 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its stake in Sprout Social by 85.2% in the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,463 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 673 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Sprout Social by 78.9% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,531 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in Sprout Social in the 1st quarter worth $47,000. Finally, CWM LLC raised its stake in Sprout Social by 266.3% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,934 shares of the company's stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 2,860 shares during the last quarter.

Sprout Social Company Profile

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.

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