Kroger (NYSE:KR) Reaches New 12-Month High Following Dividend Announcement

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday following a dividend announcement from the company. The company traded as high as $63.95 and last traded at $64.07, with a volume of 2738010 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.64.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.86%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $61.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, January 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research note on Tuesday. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Kroger in a research note on Friday, October 18th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $56.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the company from $54.00 to $73.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $66.81.

Kroger Trading Down 0.7 %

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $60.66 and a 200-day moving average of $57.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.21, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.47.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.01. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The company had revenue of $33.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.95 earnings per share. Kroger's revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $7.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In other news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total value of $1,040,302.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 53,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,304,366.08. This represents a 23.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total value of $8,379,373.86. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 217,523 shares in the company, valued at $13,743,103.14. This represents a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 195,448 shares of company stock worth $12,143,923 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Kroger

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in KR. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Kroger by 6.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 33,057,629 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,894,202,000 after buying an additional 2,110,681 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Kroger by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,019,726 shares of the company's stock valued at $914,795,000 after purchasing an additional 126,303 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,164,855 shares of the company's stock worth $353,246,000 after purchasing an additional 37,222 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,035,732 shares of the company's stock valued at $307,935,000 after purchasing an additional 144,845 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of Kroger by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 4,052,534 shares of the company's stock worth $249,717,000 after buying an additional 148,221 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.