repeater setting value function

Am I reading this code wrong? Is the value lost if not an array?
In the Kirki_Settings_Repeater_Setting class:

public function value() {
	$value = parent::value();
	if ( ! is_array( $value ) ) {
		$value = array();
	}
	return $value;
}

If the value is not an array, make it an empty array.
Should that instead be $value = (array) $value; ?