Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Boosts Stock Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,791,804 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 40,399 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned about 0.25% of Kroger worth $109,569,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in KR. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 18,045 shares of the company's stock worth $1,103,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC increased its position in Kroger by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 6,704 shares of the company's stock valued at $410,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 7,834 shares of the company's stock worth $479,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH raised its position in Kroger by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 23,410 shares of the company's stock worth $1,432,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valmark Advisers Inc. raised its position in shares of Kroger by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 4,260 shares of the company's stock worth $260,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on KR shares. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $73.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Melius Research lowered Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kroger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $66.50.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In related news, SVP Yael Cosset sold 115,149 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.08, for a total value of $7,839,343.92. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 139,338 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,486,131.04. This trade represents a 45.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 28,105 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.62, for a total value of $1,872,355.10. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 52,861 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,521,599.82. This represents a 34.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 304,923 shares of company stock worth $20,705,024. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of Kroger stock traded down $1.95 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $71.03. 5,138,209 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,451,213. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $66.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $62.03. The stock has a market cap of $46.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.79, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.54. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $49.04 and a 12 month high of $73.63.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger's payout ratio is presently 34.88%.

Kroger 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.