Morgan Stanley Trims Kroger (NYSE:KR) Target Price to $57.00

Kroger (NYSE:KR) had its price objective cut by Morgan Stanley from $58.00 to $57.00 in a report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised Kroger from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating and increased their target price for the stock from $58.00 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an outperform rating and issued a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, June 17th. StockNews.com lowered Kroger from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Kroger from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and upped their price target for the stock from $58.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $57.30.

Kroger Stock Down 0.0 %

Kroger stock opened at $49.37 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $35.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.85, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.43. Kroger has a 1-year low of $42.10 and a 1-year high of $58.34. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $53.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $50.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 20th. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $45.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $44.86 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.43% and a return on equity of 29.89%. Kroger’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.51 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Kroger will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a $1.28 dividend. This represents a $5.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.37%. This is an increase from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Kroger’s payout ratio is 39.59%.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $224,070.87. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $214,889.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Kroger news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total value of $832,800.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 77,696 shares in the company, valued at $4,313,681.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $224,070.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,768 shares in the company, valued at $214,889.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 55,796 shares of company stock worth $3,118,767 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kroger

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Kroger by 4,810.7% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 567,829 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,955,000 after buying an additional 556,266 shares during the last quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 4.3% in the third quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 284,094 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,715,000 after buying an additional 11,707 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Kroger by 23.3% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,380,764 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,115,000 after acquiring an additional 261,368 shares in the last quarter. Unigestion Holding SA purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth $671,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kroger by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 156,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,143,000 after purchasing an additional 17,380 shares in the last quarter. 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.