StockNews.com Upgrades Kroger (NYSE:KR) to “Strong-Buy”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Kroger (NYSE:KR) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report released on Monday morning.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on KR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Kroger from $59.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Kroger in a research note on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price objective on the stock. Melius Research began coverage on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $55.00 target price for the company. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.79.

Kroger Trading Down 1.8 %

NYSE KR opened at $61.23 on Monday. Kroger has a 12 month low of $44.48 and a 12 month high of $63.59. The company has a market capitalization of $44.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.48. 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 firm’s fifty day moving average price is $59.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $55.69.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $33.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The business’s revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.95 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Kroger will post 4.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $784,715.40. This trade represents a 32.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total value of $1,040,302.08. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 53,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,304,366.08. The trade was a 23.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 202,370 shares of company stock valued at $12,530,170 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KR. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in Kroger during the third quarter worth $34,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 218.8% in the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 714 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the third quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth about $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

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.