Kroger (NYSE:KR) Price Target Raised to $62.00

Kroger (NYSE:KR) had its target price raised by Morgan Stanley from $58.00 to $62.00 in a report published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on KR. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Kroger from $59.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Kroger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $60.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Kroger from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $64.31.

Kroger Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of KR opened at $62.08 on Wednesday. Kroger has a 12 month low of $43.51 and a 12 month high of $63.59. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $58.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market cap of $44.91 billion, a PE ratio of 16.42, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.48.

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

Kroger announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.86%.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In related news, SVP Yael Cosset sold 20,000 shares of the firm’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 approximately $8,444,361.80. This trade represents a 12.15 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total value of $167,730.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 74,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,142,036.44. This represents a 3.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 58,821 shares of company stock worth $3,445,490. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kroger

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Diversified Trust Co bought a new position in Kroger in the 2nd quarter worth about $315,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Kroger by 36.2% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 138,978 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,939,000 after buying an additional 36,903 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. PGGM Investments acquired a new position in Kroger during the 2nd quarter worth $396,000. Finally, Swedbank AB boosted its position in Kroger by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 342,312 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,092,000 after acquiring an additional 28,992 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.