Kroger (NYSE:KR) Price Target Raised to $73.00 at Telsey Advisory Group

Kroger (NYSE:KR) had its price objective hoisted by research analysts at Telsey Advisory Group from $70.00 to $73.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group’s price target suggests a potential upside of 10.91% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, October 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Kroger from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Seven investment 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $67.19.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of Kroger stock opened at $65.82 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $61.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $57.70. Kroger has a 1-year low of $45.17 and a 1-year high of $65.83. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The company has a market cap of $47.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.41, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.47.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.01. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The business had revenue of $33.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.95 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Kroger will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $7.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In other news, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the firm’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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 217,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,743,103.14. This trade represents a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total transaction of $1,040,302.08. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 53,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,304,366.08. This represents a 23.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 195,448 shares of company stock worth $12,143,923 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kroger

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. AMF Tjanstepension AB increased its stake in Kroger by 25.5% in the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 212,250 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,170,000 after acquiring an additional 43,143 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 145,947 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,363,000 after acquiring an additional 1,592 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB grew its holdings in shares of Kroger by 57.1% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 537,869 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,820,000 after purchasing an additional 195,557 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. increased its position in shares of Kroger by 6.5% in the third quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 35,477 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,033,000 after purchasing an additional 2,155 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Kroger by 7.2% in the third quarter. Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $894,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.