The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have assigned a hold recommendation, nine have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $67.06.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on KR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $73.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Citigroup upped their target price on Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Roth Capital set a $58.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th.

Kroger Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:KR opened at $72.00 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $68.31 and its 200 day moving average is $63.41. 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 has a 1 year low of $49.04 and a 1 year high of $73.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.62.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. On average, research analysts predict that Kroger will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is presently 34.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In other news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 28,105 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.62, for a total transaction of $1,872,355.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 52,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,521,599.82. This represents a 34.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.71, for a total transaction of $86,723.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 12,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $806,523.90. This represents a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 334,923 shares of company stock valued at $22,867,124 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kroger

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. IFC Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Kroger by 1.7% in the first quarter. IFC Advisors LLC now owns 8,642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $585,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its stake in Kroger by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 18,045 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,103,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 2.0% during the first quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 8,049 shares of the company’s stock worth $545,000 after buying an additional 155 shares during the period. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC raised its holdings in Kroger by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 6,704 shares of the company’s stock worth $410,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HBK Sorce Advisory LLC boosted its position in Kroger by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 7,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $479,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. 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.