Whole Foods Stock Spikes: ITG Says It's Tracking Toward A Sales Beat Next Quarter

Whole Foods Market, Inc. WFM is trading strong, up 6 percent. The stock price is expected in the short term to reach $33.50. Many analysts are in agreement with Whole Foods having a consensus of 18. Whole Foods has a short-term price target of a higher estimate at $51. The company's lower estimate is currently at $26.

Whole Foods stock has a dividend yield of 1.8 percent, and the revenue growth is much higher than the industry average of 11.8 percent. Its revenues have increased since the same quarter one year prior by 5.6 percent.

Related Link: Whole Foods +5.27%; Heating ITG Positive Comments

Tracking Toward Sales Beat

ITG Market Research released a note on Whole Foods, which stated that the firm's proprietary data indicates FQ1'16 revenues and SSS are tracking toward $4,865 million and -1.2 percent, above consensus of $4,817 million and -2.2 percent, respectively. ITG said that SSS growth has accelerated from management's QTD guide, albeit still weaker Q/Q.

The research firm also noted that trends for Whole Foods are also accelerating on a two-year basis (3.3 percent to date versus 2.9 percent). Relative to FQ4, ITG Market Research stated Whole Food's average basket growth was flat to down, while Y/Y traffic trends decelerated in the beginning of FQ1, but rebounded in November.

On Thursday, Whole Food's volatility led to swings in the company's share price. Shares of Whole Foods opened for trading at $30.65 and then hit $31.74. The trading session ended at $31.33, with a gain of 2.09 percent or 0.64 points. Whole Food's heightened volatility of its share price saw the trading volume jump to 9,941,664 shares.

Whole Foods has a 52-week high of the share price at $57.50. The company has a market cap of $10,692 million.