Kroger (NYSE:KR) Price Target Raised to $63.00

Kroger (NYSE:KR) had its price target hoisted by Guggenheim from $61.00 to $63.00 in a report published on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Kroger in a research report on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com cut Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target 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. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.55.

Kroger Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:KR opened at $60.52 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $57.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $54.33. Kroger has a 1 year low of $42.97 and a 1 year high of $61.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.48. 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 issued its quarterly 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 for 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 quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.96 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Kroger will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is presently 33.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kroger news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of Kroger 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $784,715.40. The trade was a 32.99 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total transaction of $167,265.70. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 47,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,644,743.01. This represents a 5.95 % 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. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kroger

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in Kroger in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Kroger during the third quarter worth $34,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in 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 in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Kroger in the third quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 2nd quarter worth $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.