Brokerages Set The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Price Target at $74.56

Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $74.5625.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $82.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $78.00 target price (up from $75.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company cut Kroger from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $70.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Barclays reiterated a “positive” rating on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, February 9th.

Institutional Trading of Kroger

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of Nova Scotia grew its stake in Kroger by 102.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 168,395 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,079,000 after acquiring an additional 85,223 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its holdings in Kroger by 43.4% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 72,244 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,870,000 after acquiring an additional 21,876 shares in the last quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC raised its position in Kroger by 85.0% during the third quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC now owns 857,667 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,828,000 after acquiring an additional 394,060 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its position in Kroger by 45.5% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 855,810 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,690,000 after acquiring an additional 267,434 shares during the period. Finally, Mediolanum International Funds Ltd lifted its holdings in Kroger by 401.3% during the third quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 19,470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,293,000 after purchasing an additional 15,586 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $72.35 on Tuesday. Kroger has a 52 week low of $58.60 and a 52 week high of $76.58. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $69.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66. The firm has a market cap of $44.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.55.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 5th. The company reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $34.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.10 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 0.69% and a return on equity of 41.08%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.14 EPS. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.300 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Kroger will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is 91.50%.

About Kroger

The Kroger Co (NYSE: KR) is one of the largest supermarket operators in the United States, offering a wide range of retail grocery and related services. Founded in Cincinnati in 1883 by Bernard Kroger, the company operates a portfolio of supermarket and multi-department store banners and provides customers with fresh foods, packaged groceries, deli and bakery items, meat and seafood, produce, and prepared foods. Kroger’s stores commonly include pharmacy services and fuel centers, positioning the company as a broad-based neighborhood retail destination for everyday needs.

In addition to traditional in-store retailing, Kroger manufactures and distributes a variety of private-label brands and operates its own food production and supply-chain facilities.