Kroger (NYSE:KR) Cut to Sell at Melius

Melius cut shares of Kroger (NYSE:KR - Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage currently has $58.00 price objective on the stock.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. Roth Mkm upped their price target on shares of Kroger from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Roth Capital set a $58.00 price objective on Kroger in a report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Kroger from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $73.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $66.50.

Kroger Trading Down 5.2 %

KR traded down $3.69 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $67.05. The company's stock had a trading volume of 14,370,631 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,192,279. Kroger has a twelve month low of $49.04 and a twelve month high of $71.83. The stock has a market cap of $48.52 billion, a PE ratio of 17.74, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.60. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $64.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $60.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

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Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. On average, analysts expect that Kroger will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.91%. Kroger's payout ratio is currently 34.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 5,541 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.79, for a total value of $392,247.39. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,480 shares of the company's stock, valued at $246,349.20. This represents a 61.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 28,105 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.62, for a total transaction of $1,872,355.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 52,861 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,521,599.82. The trade was a 34.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 228,785 shares of company stock worth $15,393,666. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in Kroger during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

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.