Kroger (NYSE:KR) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Guggenheim Analyst Says

Kroger (NYSE:KR) had its target price boosted by research analysts at Guggenheim from $68.00 to $71.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Guggenheim’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 8.92% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. StockNews.com cut Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, October 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group boosted their target price on Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $54.00 to $73.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.00.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of KR stock traded up $0.28 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $65.19. The company had a trading volume of 933,801 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,257,415. The firm has a market cap of $47.17 billion, a PE ratio of 17.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.54. Kroger has a one year low of $44.49 and a one year high of $65.75. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $60.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $57.36.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.01. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. The firm had revenue of $33.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.95 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Kroger will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $7.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Timothy A. Massa sold 25,889 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.12, for a total value of $1,556,446.68. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 115,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,965,563.32. The trade was a 18.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total value of $8,379,373.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 217,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,743,103.14. This represents a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 195,448 shares of company stock valued at $12,143,923 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Kroger in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Adirondack Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 1,628.1% during the fourth quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 553 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Company Profile

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.