Kroger (NYSE:KR) Price Target Raised to $64.00 at Evercore ISI

Kroger (NYSE:KR) had its price objective lifted by Evercore ISI from $62.00 to $64.00 in a report published on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. Evercore ISI currently has an outperform rating on the stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. TheStreet raised Kroger from a c+ rating to a b rating in a research report on Thursday, November 30th. Stephens lowered their price objective on Kroger from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Kroger from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 1st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Kroger from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 1st. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price objective on Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $54.64.

Kroger Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $57.13 on Tuesday. Kroger has a one year low of $42.10 and a one year high of $57.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $46.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.30, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.46.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.21. Kroger had a net margin of 1.44% and a return on equity of 31.44%. The firm had revenue of $37.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $37.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.99 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Kroger will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.19%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kroger

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Creekmur Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Dagco Inc. purchased a new position in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. SouthState Corp boosted its position in Kroger by 334.3% in the 4th quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 595 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 458 shares in the last quarter. Finally, VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in Kroger by 370.1% in the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 630 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.