The Kroger Co. KR, one of the largest grocery retailers, came out with third-quarter fiscal 2015 results, wherein earnings of 43 cents per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 39 cents and surged 22.9% from the prior-year quarter.
Earnings Estimate Revision: The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fiscal 2015 and 2016 has been unchanged over the past 30 days. In the trailing four quarters (excluding the quarter under review), the company has outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by an average of 9.6%.
Revenues: Kroger generated total revenue of $25,075 million that increased 0.4% year over year but came below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $25,224 million. The company’s identical supermarket sales, without fuel, grew 5.4%, marking 48th consecutive quarter of growth.
Following the quarter, the Cincinnati-based Kroger raised its fiscal 2015 guidance. The company now envisions earnings per share to lie in the range of $2.02- $2.04 per share, up from $1.92- $1.98 per share predicted earlier. The current Zacks Consensus Estimate for fiscal 2015 stands at $1.99.
Also, Kroger upgraded its identical supermarket sales growth guidance, without fuel, to 4.0%-4.5% for fiscal 2015, as against earlier expected range of 4.0% to 5.0%.
Key Events: During the quarter, Kroger bought back 853,000 shares for $31 million.
Zacks Rank: Currently, Kroger carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) which is subject to change following the earnings announcement.
Stock Movement: Kroger’s shares are up nearly 3.5% during pre-market trading hours following the earnings release.
Check back later for our full write up on Kroger’s earnings report!
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