The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $65.93.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on KR shares. Guggenheim assumed coverage on Kroger in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Kroger from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $54.00 to $73.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th.

Kroger Price Performance

KR stock opened at $58.84 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $60.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $56.15. Kroger has a 12-month low of $44.48 and a 12-month high of $63.59. The company has a market capitalization of $42.58 billion, a PE ratio of 15.57, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $33.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.95 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Kroger will post 4.43 EPS for the current year.

Kroger announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In other Kroger news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total value of $1,040,302.08. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 53,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,304,366.08. This trade represents a 23.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Yael Cosset sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total value of $1,167,800.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 144,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,444,361.80. This trade represents a 12.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 195,448 shares of company stock worth $12,143,923. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kroger

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of KR. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Kroger by 36.8% in the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 3,554 shares of the company’s stock valued at $177,000 after purchasing an additional 956 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc grew its position in Kroger by 48.4% during the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 406,072 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,275,000 after buying an additional 132,384 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Kroger by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,183,617 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,098,000 after acquiring an additional 23,235 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in Kroger by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 198,760 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,924,000 after purchasing an additional 2,632 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in Kroger by 5.9% during the second quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 21,381 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,068,000 after purchasing an additional 1,182 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

About Kroger

The Kroger Co operates as a food and drug retailer in the United States. The company operates combination food and drug stores, multi-department stores, marketplace stores, and price impact warehouses. Its combination food and drug stores offer natural food and organic sections, pharmacies, general merchandise, pet centers, fresh seafood, and organic produce; and multi-department stores provide apparel, home fashion and furnishings, outdoor living, electronics, automotive products, and toys.