Melius Research Initiates Coverage on Kroger (NYSE:KR)

Investment analysts at Melius Research began coverage on shares of Kroger (NYSE:KR) in a research report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage set a “hold” rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. Melius Research’s price objective points to a potential downside of 1.45% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on KR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Argus upped their price objective on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, September 9th. StockNews.com cut shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.36.

Kroger Trading Up 0.8 %

KR traded up $0.42 during trading on Monday, reaching $55.81. The company had a trading volume of 1,057,014 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,983,017. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $53.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $53.89. The company has a market cap of $40.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.47. Kroger has a 12-month low of $42.10 and a 12-month high of $58.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. Kroger had a return on equity of 29.89% and a net margin of 1.43%. The company had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.96 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Kroger will post 4.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total value of $167,265.70. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 47,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,644,743.01. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 approximately $2,644,743.01. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total transaction of $109,060.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $984,975.39. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Creekmur Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 255.6% in the 1st quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the period. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 101.6% in the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 496 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in Kroger in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by 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.