Kroger (NYSE:KR) Research Coverage Started at BNP Paribas

Equities research analysts at BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Kroger (NYSE:KR) in a note issued to investors on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm set a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price target on the stock. BNP Paribas’ price objective suggests a potential downside of 0.94% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Argus upped their price objective on Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. StockNews.com cut Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.09.

Kroger Stock Performance

NYSE KR opened at $56.53 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.80 billion, a PE ratio of 19.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.47. Kroger has a 1-year low of $42.10 and a 1-year high of $58.34. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $54.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $53.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.46.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $33.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.86% and a return on equity of 28.54%. Kroger’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.96 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Kroger will post 4.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total transaction of $386,247.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $784,715.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Kroger news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total value of $167,730.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 74,084 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,142,036.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares in the company, valued at $784,715.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,932 shares of company stock worth $721,243. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kroger

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KR. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 96.6% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,381,311 shares of the company’s stock valued at $268,689,000 after purchasing an additional 2,643,811 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in Kroger by 698.8% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,878,479 shares of the company’s stock valued at $93,792,000 after buying an additional 1,643,307 shares during the period. Maj Invest Holding A S raised its stake in Kroger by 35.1% in the second quarter. Maj Invest Holding A S now owns 4,395,212 shares of the company’s stock worth $219,456,000 after buying an additional 1,141,029 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in Kroger by 13.4% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 7,759,992 shares of the company’s stock worth $387,456,000 after buying an additional 917,923 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Kroger by 5.6% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,591,402 shares of the company’s stock valued at $678,562,000 after acquiring an additional 723,771 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.