The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Stock Holdings Decreased by Portfolio Design Labs LLC

Portfolio Design Labs LLC reduced its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 80.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,743 shares of the company's stock after selling 31,448 shares during the quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC's holdings in Kroger were worth $444,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KR. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in Kroger by 492.8% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 385,920 shares of the company's stock valued at $22,113,000 after purchasing an additional 320,816 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger in the third quarter valued at approximately $3,826,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Kroger by 4.7% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 205,421 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,771,000 after purchasing an additional 9,190 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new stake in Kroger during the third quarter worth approximately $1,783,000. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 5.2% in 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 period. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Kroger Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of Kroger stock traded down $0.49 on Wednesday, reaching $57.61. The company had a trading volume of 2,389,911 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,678,265. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $42.54 and a 1 year high of $60.35. The firm has a market cap of $41.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.48. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $56.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $54.15.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. Kroger had a net margin of 1.86% and a return on equity of 28.54%. The company had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.96 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.51%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on KR. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Kroger in a research note on Friday, October 18th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $56.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. StockNews.com cut Kroger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $62.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Four 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $60.09.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In other news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total transaction of $167,265.70. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 47,593 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,644,743.01. The trade was a 5.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total transaction of $386,247.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at $784,715.40. This represents a 32.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,932 shares of company stock valued at $721,243 in the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.