ING Groep NV Trims Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

ING Groep NV lessened its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 28.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 89,009 shares of the company's stock after selling 36,264 shares during the period. ING Groep NV's holdings in Kroger were worth $5,100,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the first quarter worth $222,000. Blair William & Co. IL raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 159,546 shares of the company's stock worth $9,115,000 after acquiring an additional 3,708 shares during the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 2.8% during the first quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 6,922 shares of the company's stock valued at $395,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Nwam LLC grew its holdings in Kroger by 33.8% during the first quarter. Nwam LLC now owns 6,167 shares of the company's stock worth $344,000 after buying an additional 1,559 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. raised its position in Kroger by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. now owns 20,355 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,163,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kroger Trading Down 1.3 %

NYSE:KR traded down $0.74 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $58.02. 3,632,647 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,689,279. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.19, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $56.39 and a 200-day moving average price of $54.12. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $42.10 and a 12-month high of $60.35.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $33.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.86% and a return on equity of 28.54%. Kroger's quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.96 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Kroger's payout ratio is currently 33.51%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KR has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Kroger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Kroger in a research report on Friday, October 18th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $56.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Melius Research started coverage on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a "hold" rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $60.09.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In other Kroger news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total value of $167,730.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 74,084 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,142,036.44. This represents a 3.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares in the company, valued at $784,715.40. The trade was a 32.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 12,932 shares of company stock valued at $721,243. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

About Kroger

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.