Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed their outperform rating on shares of Kroger (NYSE:KR – Free Report) in a research note published on Monday,Benzinga reports. Telsey Advisory Group currently has a $70.00 price target on the stock.
KR has been the topic of several other research reports. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, October 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Guggenheim initiated coverage on shares of Kroger in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $65.79.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on Kroger
Kroger Stock Performance
Kroger (NYSE:KR – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.01. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The business had revenue of $33.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.95 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Kroger will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Kroger declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.
Insider Activity
In other news, 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 transaction of $386,247.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $784,715.40. This represents a 32.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Yael Cosset sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total value of $1,167,800.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 144,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,444,361.80. This represents a 12.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 202,370 shares of company stock valued at $12,530,170 in the last 90 days. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kroger
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of KR. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in Kroger in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. raised 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 buying an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the third quarter worth $43,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently 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.
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