OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd reduced its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 31.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,608 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,958 shares during the quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd's holdings in Kroger were worth $661,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in KR. Prospera Financial Services Inc raised its holdings in Kroger by 49.4% during the 3rd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 24,153 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,384,000 after buying an additional 7,989 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Kroger by 5.2% during the third quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,306 shares of the company's stock valued at $361,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the third quarter valued at $1,783,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 205,421 shares of the company's stock worth $11,771,000 after acquiring an additional 9,190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 492.8% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 385,920 shares of the company's stock worth $22,113,000 after acquiring an additional 320,816 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Kroger Stock Down 1.5 %
Shares of NYSE:KR traded down $1.01 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $64.39. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,542,254 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,852,421. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $63.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $60.04. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $49.04 and a 52 week high of $68.51. The company has a market capitalization of $46.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.51.
Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. As a group, research analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.
Kroger declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.
Kroger Announces Dividend
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.99%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.88%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other news, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 11,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.37, for a total value of $719,070.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 127,106 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,308,919.22. The trade was a 7.96 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Yael Cosset sold 115,149 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.08, for a total transaction of $7,839,343.92. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 139,338 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,486,131.04. The trade was a 45.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 223,244 shares of company stock worth $15,001,418. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
KR has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $54.00 to $73.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Kroger from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group raised their price target on Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $73.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $66.88.
View Our Latest Analysis on KR
Kroger Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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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