By otakuyassine3@gmail.com 
StockNews.com upgraded shares of Kroger (NYSE:KR – Free Report) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Monday morning.
Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Kroger from $59.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Kroger from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.79.
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Kroger Stock Performance
Shares of KR opened at $61.15 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $59.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $55.80. Kroger has a 12 month low of $44.48 and a 12 month high of $63.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.48.
Kroger (NYSE:KR – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $33.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.19 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The company’s revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.95 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Kroger will post 4.43 EPS for the current year.
Kroger declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $7.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.
Insider Activity
In related news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were 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 represents a 23.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total transaction of $386,247.60. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $784,715.40. The trade was a 32.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 202,370 shares of company stock worth $12,530,170 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kroger
A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in Kroger in the second quarter worth $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Kroger by 218.8% in the 2nd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 714 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Kroger in the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently 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.
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