Kroger (KR) closed the most recent trading day at $48.74, moving +1.56% from the previous trading session. The stock outpaced the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.4%. At the same time, the Dow added 0.52%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 10.86%.
Heading into today, shares of the supermarket chain had gained 4.01% over the past month, lagging the Retail-Wholesale sector's gain of 4.21% and outpacing the S&P 500's gain of 3.98% in that time.
Kroger will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release. In that report, analysts expect Kroger to post earnings of $0.92 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 2.22%. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $34.24 billion, down 1.15% from the year-ago period.
Looking at the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $4.52 per share and revenue of $151.55 billion. These totals would mark changes of +6.86% and +2.22%, respectively, from last year.
Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for Kroger. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 0.25% higher. Kroger is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Looking at its valuation, Kroger is holding a Forward P/E ratio of 10.61. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 13.62, which means Kroger is trading at a discount to the group.
Also, we should mention that KR has a PEG ratio of 1.84. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. Retail - Supermarkets stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 1.84 based on yesterday's closing prices.
The Retail - Supermarkets industry is part of the Retail-Wholesale sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 16, which puts it in the top 7% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com.
4 Oil Stocks with Massive Upsides
Global demand for oil is through the roof... and oil producers are struggling to keep up. So even though oil prices are well off their recent highs, you can expect big profits from the companies that supply the world with "black gold."
Zacks Investment Research has just released an urgent special report to help you bank on this trend.
In Oil Market on Fire, you'll discover 4 unexpected oil and gas stocks positioned for big gains in the coming weeks and months. You don't want to miss these recommendations.
Download your free report now to see them.The Kroger Co. (KR) : Free Stock Analysis Report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
