Dive Brief:
- Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. saw soaring sales in both fourth quarter 2014 and the entire fiscal year. In the first quarter, net sales jumped 21% and 8.5% for store sales over the same period last year as well as two-year comparable store sales growth of 22.3%.
- The company's adjusted net income for the fiscal year also significantly increased by 65% over 2013 with adjusted diluted earnings per share at $0.72, a 50% increase year over year.
- In addition to strong earnings, Sprouts saw a 14% unit growth after opening 24 new stores in fiscal year 2014, and it now operates 191 stores in 10 states.
Dive Insight:
Doug Sanders, Sprouts' president and CEO, said in a press release he believes consumers' shifting focus to healthier foods led to these positive results and store growth.
Sprouts is still in direct competition with Whole Foods, who is feeling the pressure of the successes of health food stores like Sprouts in recent years.