Kroger (NYSE:KR) Announces Earnings Results

Kroger (NYSE:KR) announced its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.01, Briefing.com reports. The firm had revenue of $33.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.19 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 28.54% and a net margin of 1.86%. The business’s revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.95 EPS. Kroger updated its FY25 guidance to $4.35-4.45 EPS.

Kroger Price Performance

NYSE:KR traded down $1.02 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $58.89. 705,046 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,630,403. Kroger has a 12-month low of $43.51 and a 12-month high of $61.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company has a market cap of $42.61 billion, a PE ratio of 15.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.48. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $57.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.53.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.17%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total value of $167,265.70. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 47,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,644,743.01. This trade represents a 5.95 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $784,715.40. The trade was a 32.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,932 shares of company stock valued at $721,243 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price target on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. BMO Capital Markets lowered Kroger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $54.00 to $73.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Guggenheim increased their price target on Kroger from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Melius Research began coverage on Kroger in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $55.00 price objective on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $62.64.

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.