Russell Investments Group Ltd. lowered its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,239,676 shares of the company's stock after selling 16,897 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.45% of Kroger worth $198,109,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company's stock.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other news, EVP Christine S. Wheatley sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.44, for a total value of $2,083,200.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 127,737 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,870,057.28. This represents a 19.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 5,541 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.79, for a total value of $392,247.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $246,349.20. This trade represents a 61.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 258,785 shares of company stock worth $17,476,866. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.
Kroger Trading Up 2.7 %
NYSE:KR traded up $1.80 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $67.63. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,661,950 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,292,442. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $65.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $61.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.54. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $49.04 and a 1 year high of $71.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.89, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.60.
Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The firm had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.96 billion. Research analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Kroger announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $7.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.
Kroger Announces Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is presently 34.88%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of equities research analysts have commented on KR shares. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Kroger from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Kroger from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Kroger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kroger currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $66.50.
Check Out Our Latest Analysis on Kroger
Kroger 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.
Further Reading
Before you consider Kroger, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Kroger wasn't on the list.
While Kroger currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.
View The Five Stocks Here
Which stocks are likely to thrive in today's challenging market? Enter your email address and we'll send you MarketBeat's list of ten stocks that will drive in any economic environment.
Get This Free Report
