Kroger (NYSE:KR) Trading Up 4.8% After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) shot up 4.8% on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as high as $65.87 and last traded at $65.56. 1,365,532 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 75% from the average session volume of 5,463,883 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.53.

The company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $34.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.92%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is 33.86%.

Kroger declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $7.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $54.00 to $73.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $73.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $67.50.

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Insider Transactions at Kroger

In other news, SVP Yael Cosset sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total value of $1,167,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 144,620 shares in the company, valued at $8,444,361.80. This represents a 12.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total transaction of $8,379,373.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 217,523 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,743,103.14. This trade represents a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 169,559 shares of company stock worth $10,587,476 in the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KR. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth $62,000. Comprehensive Money Management Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth $320,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,011 shares of the company's stock worth $612,000 after purchasing an additional 804 shares in the last quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth $120,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth $49,760,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Kroger Stock Performance

The stock's 50-day moving average price is $62.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $59.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The firm has a market cap of $48.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.51.

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.