Kura Sushi USA (NASDAQ:KRUS) Upgraded to "Strong-Buy" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Kura Sushi USA (KRUS) from a "Hold" to a "Strong Buy," but MarketBeat shows a mixed analyst picture—one Strong Buy, four Buy, five Hold, one Sell—and a consensus rating of "Hold" with an average price target of $77.00.
• KRUS reported revenue of $73.46M but an EPS loss of $0.23 (missing the -$0.17 consensus), leaving the company unprofitable while analysts model about 0.22 EPS for the year.
• Leadership and ownership moves—CFO departure effective April 28 and an insider sale of ~9,874 shares—paired with "ho‑hum" guidance spurred selling, even as technicals show a recent 50‑day/200‑day "golden cross" and institutional ownership sits near 65%.

Kura Sushi USA (NASDAQ:KRUS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

KRUS has been the topic of a number of other reports. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating on shares of Kura Sushi USA in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Lake Street Capital restated a "buy" rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Kura Sushi USA in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $85.00 price target on shares of Kura Sushi USA in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Kura Sushi USA from $59.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Loop Capital set a $70.00 price target on shares of Kura Sushi USA in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $77.00.

Kura Sushi USA Price Performance

NASDAQ KRUS opened at $60.01 on Tuesday. Kura Sushi USA has a 12 month low of $40.50 and a 12 month high of $95.98. The company has a market capitalization of $726.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -181.85 and a beta of 1.65. The company's fifty day moving average price is $67.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $61.14.

Kura Sushi USA (NASDAQ:KRUS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 7th. The company reported ($0.23) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.17) by ($0.06). Kura Sushi USA had a negative return on equity of 0.63% and a negative net margin of 1.37%.The business had revenue of $73.46 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $72.98 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.08) earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Kura Sushi USA will post 0.22 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Hajime Uba sold 9,874 shares of Kura Sushi USA stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.93, for a total value of $720,110.82. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 6,026 shares in the company, valued at $439,476.18. This trade represents a 62.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kura Sushi USA

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Stephens Inc. AR lifted its position in Kura Sushi USA by 15.3% in the 4th quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 839,308 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,921,000 after purchasing an additional 111,502 shares during the last quarter. Granahan Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Kura Sushi USA by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. Granahan Investment Management LLC now owns 787,108 shares of the company's stock worth $41,189,000 after purchasing an additional 116,096 shares in the last quarter. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Kura Sushi USA in the third quarter worth $34,586,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Kura Sushi USA in the fourth quarter worth $19,194,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kura Sushi USA by 17.5% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 345,958 shares of the company's stock worth $29,780,000 after purchasing an additional 51,574 shares in the last quarter. 65.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kura Sushi USA News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Kura Sushi USA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple brokerages raised targets/ratings (Citigroup raised its target to $78, Barclays to $68), signaling analyst optimism about a recovery and giving upside potential. Citigroup price target raise
• Positive Sentiment: DA Davidson issued a "Buy" rating on KRUS, and Zacks added KRUS to its Rank #1 (Strong Buy) list — further support from the sell-side that the operational recovery could continue. DA Davidson Buy Zacks Strong Buy list
• Positive Sentiment: Technicals look constructive after a "golden cross" (50-day SMA crossed above 200-day SMA), which can attract trend-following traders. Zacks golden cross
• Neutral Sentiment: Q2 results were mixed: revenue beat estimates (reported ~$80.0M vs. ~$77.2M expected) and restaurant-level margin improvements, but the company reported an EPS miss (reported loss larger than consensus) and remains unprofitable on the bottom line. These mixed fundamentals explain both the analyst upgrades and investor caution. MarketBeat earnings summary
• Neutral Sentiment: Seeking Alpha upgraded KRUS to "Neutral" after noting recovering comps and margin gains, but also warned about volatile comps, macro headwinds, and limited cash (~$26M), which could constrain aggressive expansion. Seeking Alpha upgrade
• Negative Sentiment: The company announced CFO Jeff Uttz will depart April 28; the CEO will serve as interim CFO. Leadership turnover in the finance role creates short-term execution and disclosure risks and likely amplified selling today. GlobeNewswire CFO departure
• Negative Sentiment: Market headlines and commentary (including The Motley Fool) called out "ho-hum" guidance and the CFO departure as catalysts for heavy selling, helping explain the intraday decline. Fool article on guidance and CFO
• Negative Sentiment: Stocks were moving lower in pre-market trade, reflecting immediate negative reaction to the combined earnings/guidance and leadership news. MSN pre-market movers

About Kura Sushi USA

Kura Sushi USA, Inc operates Japanese‐style revolving sushi restaurants across the United States. The company's concept centers on delivering a modern sushi dining experience by combining fresh ingredients with automated conveyer belt and plate‐return systems. Guests can choose from a broad menu that includes nigiri, sashimi, maki rolls, tempura, udon noodles and chef‐inspired seasonal dishes, all served directly from the conveyor belt or ordered on tabletop touchscreens.

Each restaurant integrates patented technology to ensure food quality and operational efficiency.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.