Kroger (NYSE:KR) Receives Buy Rating from The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated their buy rating on shares of Kroger (NYSE:KR) in a research report released on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a $70.00 price objective on the stock.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Bank of America lifted their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $61.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Kroger from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Seven research 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.06.

Kroger Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of KR opened at $64.03 on Tuesday. 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 business has a fifty day moving average of $60.49 and a 200 day moving average of $57.19. The company has a market cap of $46.33 billion, a PE ratio of 16.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.47. Kroger has a 52-week low of $44.48 and a 52-week high of $64.90.

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

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.86%.

Kroger declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total transaction of $1,040,302.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 53,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,304,366.08. The trade was a 23.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Yael Cosset sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total transaction of $1,167,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 144,620 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,444,361.80. This trade represents a 12.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 195,448 shares of company stock valued at $12,143,923. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kroger

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KR. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Adirondack Trust Co. boosted its position in Kroger by 1,628.1% in the 4th quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 553 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares in the last quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. 80.93% of the stock is 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.