The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Sold by LSV Asset Management

LSV Asset Management lessened its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 3.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,467,864 shares of the company's stock after selling 339,483 shares during the quarter. Kroger accounts for approximately 1.2% of LSV Asset Management's holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. LSV Asset Management owned approximately 1.17% of Kroger worth $517,810,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on KR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Kroger from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Bank of America raised their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $66.50.

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Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 28,105 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.62, for a total value of $1,872,355.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 52,861 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,521,599.82. This represents a 34.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Yael Cosset sold 115,149 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.08, for a total value 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. This trade represents a 45.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 258,785 shares of company stock worth $17,476,866. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KR traded down $0.99 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $68.09. 3,856,177 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,356,998. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $49.04 and a 1 year high of $71.93. 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 company's 50-day moving average is $65.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $61.46. The company has a market capitalization of $45.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.01, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.60.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.96 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger's payout ratio is 34.88%.

About Kroger

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.