The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $60.09.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on KR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective 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. Argus upped their target price on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Kroger in a research report on Friday, October 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price target on the stock.

Kroger Stock Down 1.2 %

KR opened at $58.04 on Friday. Kroger has a 12 month low of $42.10 and a 12 month high of $60.35. The company has a market cap of $41.99 billion, a PE ratio of 15.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company has a 50 day moving average of $56.28 and a 200 day moving average of $54.10.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. Kroger had a return on equity of 28.54% and a net margin of 1.86%. The business had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.96 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Kroger will post 4.46 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kroger news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total transaction of $167,730.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 74,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,142,036.44. This trade represents a 3.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total transaction of $386,247.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares in the company, valued at $784,715.40. This represents a 32.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 12,932 shares of company stock valued at $721,243 over the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kroger

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Kroger by 218.8% during the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 714 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Kroger in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.