Telsey Advisory Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Kroger (NYSE:KR) Stock

Kroger (NYSE:KR) had its target price hoisted by stock analysts at Telsey Advisory Group from $62.00 to $65.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 7.44% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on KR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Kroger from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, BNP Paribas started coverage on Kroger in a research note on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price target on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.55.

Kroger Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:KR opened at $60.50 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $57.31 and a 200 day moving average of $54.37. Kroger has a 52-week low of $42.97 and a 52-week high of $61.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.77 billion, a PE ratio of 15.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.48.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted 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. The firm had revenue of $33.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 28.54% and a net margin of 1.86%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.96 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Kroger will post 4.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other Kroger news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through 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 value of $167,265.70. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 47,593 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,644,743.01. This represents a 5.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 12,932 shares of company stock worth $721,243 over the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kroger

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of 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 bought a new position in Kroger in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 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.