Kroger (NYSE:KR) Lowered to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Kroger (NYSE:KR) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on KR. Wolfe Research upgraded Kroger to a strong-buy rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Friday. Argus boosted their price target on Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $59.09.

Kroger Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of KR stock opened at $56.19 on Monday. Kroger has a 1-year low of $42.10 and a 1-year high of $58.34. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $53.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $53.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The company has a market cap of $40.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.47.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 29.89% and a net margin of 1.43%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.96 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Kroger will post 4.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a $0.32 dividend. This is a boost from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.69%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total value of $109,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $984,975.39. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kroger

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 255.6% during the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 101.6% during the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 496 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the second quarter valued at approximately $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.