Kroger (NYSE:KR) Given “Outperform” Rating at Telsey Advisory Group

Telsey Advisory Group reiterated their outperform rating on shares of Kroger (NYSE:KR) in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $73.00 price target on the stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Kroger from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Roth Mkm upped their target price on Kroger from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Kroger has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.19.

Kroger Trading Down 3.3 %

Shares of KR stock opened at $62.71 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.59, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.47. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $62.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $58.72. Kroger has a 1 year low of $49.00 and a 1 year high of $66.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $33.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.95 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Kroger will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.04%. Kroger’s payout ratio is 33.86%.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In related news, SVP Yael Cosset sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was 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 directly owns 144,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,444,361.80. This trade represents a 12.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total value of $8,379,373.86. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 217,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,743,103.14. The trade was a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 195,448 shares of company stock worth $12,143,923. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kroger

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

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.