OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC Buys 15,130 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 141.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,797 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 15,130 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Kroger were worth $1,478,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of KR. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in Kroger by 218.8% during the 2nd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 714 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Kroger during the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC bought a new stake in Kroger during the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. BNP Paribas began coverage on Kroger in a report on Friday, October 18th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $56.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Argus increased their price target on Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $60.09.

Kroger Stock Up 0.1 %

KR stock traded up $0.04 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $58.06. 2,401,246 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,679,024. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $42.31 and a 12 month high of $60.35. The company has a market cap of $42.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.19, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.48. The firm's 50-day moving average is $56.39 and its 200-day moving average is $54.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.46.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.86% and a return on equity of 28.54%. The company's revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.96 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm 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 dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Kroger's payout ratio is currently 33.51%.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other Kroger news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $784,715.40. The trade was a 32.99 % 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, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total transaction of $167,730.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 74,084 shares in the company, valued at $4,142,036.44. The trade was a 3.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,932 shares of company stock worth $721,243. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.