The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the nineteen brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $72.00.

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Kroger from $71.00 to $61.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, June 1st. Barclays set a $61.00 price objective on Kroger and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Erste Group Bank cut Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th.

Institutional Trading of Kroger

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Oxbow Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the second quarter valued at about $961,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the second quarter valued at approximately $10,963,000. Foster & Motley Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the second quarter valued at approximately $12,875,000. RHS Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $371,000. Finally, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,231,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of KR stock opened at $56.70 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $59.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $65.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.43. Kroger has a fifty-two week low of $54.15 and a fifty-two week high of $76.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.43.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 18th. The company reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.59 by ($0.01). Kroger had a return on equity of 44.33% and a net margin of 0.71%.The business had revenue of $46.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $45.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.49 earnings per share. Kroger’s revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.30 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Kroger will post 5.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Saturday, August 15th will be given a $0.39 dividend. This is a positive change from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is 82.35%.

Kroger Company Profile

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.