Kroger (NYSE:KR) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Kroger has been upgraded from a "buy" to a "strong-buy" rating by Wall Street Zen, indicating increased confidence from analysts in the stock's potential.
• Recent quarterly earnings showed Kroger earning $1.04 per share, exceeding estimates and reflecting a slight revenue increase compared to the same quarter last year.
• Several institutional investors have increased their stakes in Kroger, further demonstrating strong investor interest as 80.93% of the company's shares are now owned by hedge funds and institutional investors.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group set a $83.00 price objective on shares of Kroger and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Morgan Stanley set a $76.00 price objective on shares of Kroger and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $82.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Thursday. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $78.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Friday. Finally, Melius Research raised shares of Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $70.58.

Kroger Stock Up 1.7%

KR stock opened at $68.38 on Friday. Kroger has a 52 week low of $54.51 and a 52 week high of $74.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $70.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $68.86.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 11th. The company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.04. Kroger had a net margin of 1.86% and a return on equity of 32.62%. The company had revenue of $33.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.93 EPS. Kroger's revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Kroger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.700-4.800 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Kroger will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In related news, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 3,810 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.61, for a total value of $272,834.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 85,850 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,147,718.50. This trade represents a 4.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 16,475 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.79, for a total transaction of $1,215,690.25. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 49,360 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,642,274.40. This trade represents a 25.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 198,948 shares of company stock worth $14,422,926 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kroger

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 2.6% in the second quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 9,311 shares of the company's stock worth $668,000 after acquiring an additional 232 shares in the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 40.7% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 207,292 shares of the company's stock worth $14,866,000 after acquiring an additional 59,911 shares in the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the second quarter worth $36,000. Centaurus Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 12.3% in the second quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 5,131 shares of the company's stock worth $368,000 after acquiring an additional 563 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 88.4% in the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 51,550 shares of the company's stock worth $3,697,000 after acquiring an additional 24,187 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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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