Gateway Investment Advisers LLC boosted its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 93.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 33,867 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 16,350 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC's holdings in Kroger were worth $2,071,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Moors & Cabot Inc. lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 20.0% during the 2nd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 10,565 shares of the company's stock valued at $528,000 after buying an additional 1,760 shares during the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its position in Kroger by 5.0% during the second quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 27,202 shares of the company's stock worth $1,358,000 after purchasing an additional 1,303 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL boosted its position in Kroger by 0.6% during the second quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 160,512 shares of the company's stock worth $8,014,000 after purchasing an additional 966 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,536,000. Finally, MQS Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $432,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of research firms recently weighed in on KR. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $54.00 to $73.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Kroger from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. 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. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, October 18th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $65.93.
Get Our Latest Research Report on Kroger
Kroger Price Performance
NYSE:KR traded down $0.28 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $58.34. The company had a trading volume of 5,510,181 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,451,751. The company has a market capitalization of $42.22 billion, a PE ratio of 15.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The Kroger Co. has a 52-week low of $44.48 and a 52-week high of $63.59. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $60.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $56.53.
Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $33.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.19 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.95 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.
Kroger announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $7.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total transaction of $1,040,302.08. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 53,782 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,304,366.08. This trade represents a 23.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Timothy A. Massa sold 25,889 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.12, for a total value of $1,556,446.68. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 115,861 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,965,563.32. This trade represents a 18.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 195,448 shares of company stock valued at $12,143,923. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
About Kroger
(
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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