Kroger (NYSE:KR) Upgraded by Melius to Hold Rating

Kroger (NYSE:KR) was upgraded by research analysts at Melius from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Finviz reports. The firm currently has a $70.00 price objective on the stock. Melius’ price objective points to a potential upside of 1.57% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Citigroup increased their target price on Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on Kroger from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Roth Capital set a $58.00 price objective on Kroger in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.06.

Kroger Stock Performance

NYSE:KR opened at $68.92 on Tuesday. Kroger has a 52 week low of $49.04 and a 52 week high of $73.63. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $68.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The company has a market cap of $45.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.62.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Kroger will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 4,492 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.53, for a total value of $298,852.76. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 3,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $231,524.40. The trade was a 56.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.71, for a total value of $86,723.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 12,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $806,523.90. This trade 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 worth $22,867,124 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of KR. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in Kroger during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

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.