The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totalling 11,910,000 shares, a decline of 11.1% from the July 31st total of 13,390,000 shares. Currently, 1.7% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 5,090,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Kroger from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 21st. StockNews.com raised Kroger from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Kroger from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, June 17th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Kroger to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $58.64.

Insider Activity

In other Kroger news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Friday, July 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total value of $109,060.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 18,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at $984,975.39. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Kroger

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Creekmur Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Kroger by 255.6% in the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 448 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. SouthState Corp boosted its stake in Kroger by 334.3% in the fourth quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 595 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 458 shares during the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Kroger by 101.6% during the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 496 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kroger Price Performance

Kroger stock traded up $0.71 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $53.21. 4,417,168 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,972,057. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.86. Kroger has a 12 month low of $42.10 and a 12 month high of $58.34. The business's 50-day moving average is $52.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.25.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 20th. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $45.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.86 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 29.89% and a net margin of 1.43%. The firm's revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.51 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Kroger will post 4.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is a boost from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.41%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.69%.

Kroger Company 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.

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