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Kroger (KR) Stock Drops Despite Market Gains: Important Facts to Note

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In the latest trading session, Kroger (KR - Free Report) closed at $59.60, marking a -0.52% move from the previous day. This move lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.1%. At the same time, the Dow added 0.69%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.06%.

The supermarket chain's stock has climbed by 8.22% in the past month, exceeding the Retail-Wholesale sector's gain of 5.33% and the S&P 500's gain of 4.37%.

Investors will be eagerly watching for the performance of Kroger in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company's upcoming EPS is projected at $0.98, signifying a 3.16% increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Alongside, our most recent consensus estimate is anticipating revenue of $34.3 billion, indicating a 1.02% upward movement from the same quarter last year.

Looking at the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $4.46 per share and revenue of $148.76 billion. These totals would mark changes of -6.3% and -0.85%, respectively, from last year.

It's also important for investors to be aware of any recent modifications to analyst estimates for Kroger. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. 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. To exploit this, we've formed the Zacks Rank, a quantitative model that includes these estimate changes and presents a viable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has witnessed an unchanged state. Kroger currently has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Valuation is also important, so investors should note that Kroger has a Forward P/E ratio of 13.42 right now. This signifies a discount in comparison to the average Forward P/E of 13.89 for its industry.

One should further note that KR currently holds a PEG ratio of 0.93. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. The Retail - Supermarkets industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 1.84 as of yesterday's close.

The Retail - Supermarkets industry is part of the Retail-Wholesale sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 93, putting it in the top 37% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank is ordered from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Make sure to utilize Zacks.com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.


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