Evercore ISI Cuts Kroger (NYSE:KR) Price Target to $75.00

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) had its target price lowered by analysts at Evercore ISI from $76.00 to $75.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "outperform" rating on the stock. Evercore ISI's price target suggests a potential upside of 13.65% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on KR. Roth Capital set a $58.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Melius Research raised Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Kroger from $65.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $68.11.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KR traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $65.99. The stock had a trading volume of 2,779,104 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,779,276. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.54. Kroger has a 12-month low of $49.04 and a 12-month high of $73.63. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $68.87 and a 200-day moving average of $65.08. The company has a market capitalization of $43.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.58.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total transaction of $72,030.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 10,473 shares in the company, valued at approximately $754,370.19. The trade was a 8.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 31,271 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.08, for a total value of $2,160,200.68. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 82,684 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,711,810.72. This represents a 27.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 138,638 shares of company stock worth $9,632,165 in the last three months. 0.44% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KR. IFC Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 1.7% in the first quarter. IFC Advisors LLC now owns 8,642 shares of the company's stock valued at $585,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its stake in Kroger by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 18,045 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,103,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC raised its holdings in Kroger by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 8,049 shares of the company's stock valued at $545,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 6,704 shares of the company's stock worth $410,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HBK Sorce Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 7,834 shares of the company's stock valued at $479,000 after purchasing an additional 166 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.

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