Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 12.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 908,255 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 98,543 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned approximately 0.13% of Kroger worth $55,540,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Prospera Financial Services Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 49.4% during the third quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 24,153 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,384,000 after purchasing an additional 7,989 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake 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 buying 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 worth $1,783,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 4.7% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 205,421 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,771,000 after acquiring an additional 9,190 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its position 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 purchasing an additional 320,816 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of analysts have weighed in on KR shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Kroger from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $66.88.
View Our Latest Stock Report on Kroger
Insiders Place Their Bets
In related news, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 11,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.37, for a total value of $719,070.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 127,106 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,308,919.22. This trade represents a 7.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Yael Cosset sold 115,149 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.08, for a total value of $7,839,343.92. Following the completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 223,244 shares of company stock valued at $15,001,418 in the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Kroger Price Performance
KR traded down $1.01 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $64.39. 5,542,254 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,852,421. The company has a market cap of $46.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.03, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.51. 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 12-month low of $49.04 and a 12-month high of $68.51. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $63.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $60.04.
Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.
Kroger Dividend Announcement
The company 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 1.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is presently 34.88%.
Kroger announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.
Kroger Profile
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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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