Delap Wealth Advisory LLC Sells 11,500 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Delap Wealth Advisory LLC reduced its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 68.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,299 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,500 shares during the quarter. Delap Wealth Advisory LLC's holdings in Kroger were worth $265,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Creekmur Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Kroger by 255.6% in the 1st quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 448 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Kroger by 101.6% in the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 496 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, Palisade Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the first quarter worth $29,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on KR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, September 9th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Kroger from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $58.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Kroger to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $59.09.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total transaction of $109,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 18,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $984,975.39. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the company's 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $984,975.39. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total value of $167,265.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 47,593 shares in the company, valued at $2,644,743.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of KR traded up $0.56 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $55.39. The stock had a trading volume of 9,187,110 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,004,577. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.98 billion, a PE ratio of 18.90, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $42.10 and a 12 month high of $58.34. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $53.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $53.87.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $33.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.43% and a return on equity of 29.89%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.96 EPS. Analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.45 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders 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 2.31%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.69%.

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.