IMKTA vs SFM Stock Comparison

Ingles Markets and Sprouts Farmers Market Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
IMKTA Ingles Markets Inc
$87.88 +5.8% 1M +21.0% 1Y
Market cap
$1.66B
P/E
16.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$5.42B
Div. yield
0.01%
Grocery Stores Consumer Staples
2 wins

Head to Head

10 decided of 12

Sprouts Farmers Market leads on 8 of the 12 questions below (Sprouts Farmers Market 8, Ingles Markets 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionIMKTASFMLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $1.66B $6.20B SFM
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 16.0x 12.3x SFM
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 14.6x 12.2x SFM
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +1.0% +7.2% SFM
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 1.9% 5.6% SFM
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 5.0% 34.2% SFM
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.9x — –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +21.0% -38.8% IMKTA
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +5.5%/yr +24.2%/yr SFM
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 25.3% 52.6% IMKTA
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 61/100 75/100 SFM

Percentile Scorecard

IMKTASFM

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisIMKTASFM
Valuation 90 #5 of 40 72 #12 of 40
Growth 49 #20 of 38 73 #11 of 38
Profitability 44 #21 of 37 92 #4 of 37
Financial Health 72 #12 of 40 51 #20 of 40
Shareholder Returns 52 #14 of 28 89 #4 of 28
Overall 61 75
  • IMKTA ranked among 41 companies in Staples Retail
  • SFM ranked among 41 companies in Staples Retail

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodIMKTASFMSPY
1 month +5.8%+0.3% -1.0%
3 months +2.4%-11.5% +2.9%
6 months -3.1%-9.2% +6.4%
Year to date +28.2%-16.8% +11.4%
1 year +21.0%-38.8% +13.1%
3 years +13.1%+51.4% +79.4%
3 years, per year +4.2%+14.8% +21.5%
5 years +30.9%+195.5% +67.7%
5 years, per year +5.5%+24.2% +10.9%
10 years +114.3%+212.4% +255.2%
10 years, per year +7.9%+12.1% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureIMKTASFMSPY
Volatility, 1Y 25.3%52.6% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 25.4%59.6% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.030.01 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.83-0.74 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -41.0%-65.2% -25.4%
From 52-week high -7.7%-38.8% -2.5%
52-week high $95.23$108.28 $779.14
52-week low $68.55$62.49 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleIMKTASFM
P/E now vs peer median 16.1xmedian 21.6x 12.4xmedian 21.6x
P/S now vs peer median 0.3xmedian 0.5x 0.7xmedian 0.5x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 8.2xmedian 9.7x 7.1xmedian 9.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 11.2xmedian 17.8x 17.4xmedian 17.8x
P/B now vs peer median 1.0xmedian 3.0x 4.1xmedian 3.0x
PEG now vs peer median -0.70median 1.06 0.44median 1.06

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsIMKTASFM
Revenue $5.42B $9.00B
Gross profit $1.33B $3.49B
Operating income $143.12M $669.95M
Net income $103.99M $502.86M
Free cash flow $149.58M $356.80M
EPS (diluted) $4.44 $5.33
Cash & equivalents – $223.93M
Total debt $2.03B –
Shares (diluted) 23.44M 94.41M
Enterprise value $1.66B $5.15B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricIMKTASFM
P/E 16.1x 12.4x
P/FCF 11.2x 17.4x
P/Operating cash flow 6.7x 9.2x
P/S 0.3x 0.7x
P/B 1.0x 4.1x
P/Tangible book 1.0x 4.8x
EV/EBITDA 8.2x 7.1x
EV/EBIT 15.2x 8.9x
EV/Revenue 0.4x 0.7x
EV/FCF 14.5x 16.8x
EV/Operating cash flow 8.7x 8.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -0.70 0.44

Growth

14 metrics
MetricIMKTASFM
Revenue growth (1Y) 1.0% 7.2%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -2.0% 9.7%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 7.1% 7.2%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -1.8% 11.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) 76.4% 5.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -23.3% 23.1%
Net income growth (1Y) 84.3% 3.7%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -23.1% 24.2%
EPS growth (1Y) 84.3% 8.5%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -22.9% 28.1%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 48.7% -9.4%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -0.8% 8.9%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 1,714% -29.0%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 28.0% 1.4%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricIMKTASFM
Gross margin 24.5% 38.7%
EBITDA margin 4.9% 9.4%
Operating margin 2.6% 7.4%
Pretax margin 2.5% 7.5%
Net margin 1.9% 5.6%
FCF margin 2.8% 4.0%
Operating cash flow margin 4.6% 7.5%
Return on equity 6.2% 34.3%
Return on assets 4.0% 11.7%
Return on invested capital 5.0% 34.2%
Return on capital employed 6.3% 19.0%
Asset turnover 2.1x 2.1x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.4x 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue – 0.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricIMKTASFM
Debt / assets 19.0% –
Debt / equity 0.3x –
Net debt / EBITDA 1.9x –
Debt / FCF 3.3x –
Liabilities / assets 36.0% 65.4%
Equity / assets 64.0% 34.6%
Interest coverage 7.7x –
Current ratio 3.2x 1.0x
Quick ratio – 0.4x
Cash ratio – 0.3x
Altman Z-score 4.52 4.11

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricIMKTASFM
Dividend yield 0.8% –
Net buyback yield – 6.3%
Shareholder yield 0.8% 6.3%
Payout ratio (earnings) 11.8% –
Payout ratio (FCF) 8.2% –
Dividend growth (1Y) 0.0% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 0.0% –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusIMKTASFM
Forward P/E 14.6xFY2023 12.2xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $6.02FY2023 $5.41FY2026
EPS growth, next FY – +1.9%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +9.3% +16.5%
Revenue, next fiscal year $4.91BFY2023 $9.10BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY – +3.3%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -3.8% +7.1%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersIMKTASFM
Held by institutions 97.6% 100.0%
Institutions holding 236 642
Change in shares held, QoQ -0.2% +8.8%
Institutions buying 116 318
Institutions selling 70 237
Buyers to sellers 1.66 1.34

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

IMKTASFM
IMKTA 1.00 0.21
SFM 0.21 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, IMKTA and SFM?

Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) is the largest by market capitalisation: Ingles Markets (IMKTA) $1.66B, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) $6.20B.

Which stock is cheaper, IMKTA and SFM?

Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Ingles Markets (IMKTA) 16.0x, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) 12.3x). On next year's consensus earnings, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) is cheapest (Ingles Markets (IMKTA) 14.6x, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) 12.2x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Ingles Markets (IMKTA) +1.0%, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) +7.2%.

Which company is more profitable?

Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) has the highest net margin (Ingles Markets (IMKTA) 1.9%, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) 5.6%). On return on invested capital, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) leads (Ingles Markets (IMKTA) 5.0%, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) 34.2%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Ingles Markets (IMKTA) returned the most: Ingles Markets (IMKTA) +21.0%, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) -38.8%. Over five years, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) compounded fastest (Ingles Markets (IMKTA) +5.5%/yr, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) +24.2%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Ingles Markets (IMKTA) 0.01%, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) 0.00%. Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Ingles Markets (IMKTA) has been the steadiest (Ingles Markets (IMKTA) 25.3%, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) 52.6%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Do IMKTA and SFM move together?

Their daily returns over the past year have a correlation of 0.21, a weak relationship. Holding both diversifies more than two closely linked stocks would.

Which is the better stock, IMKTA and SFM?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) leads on 8. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.