4,712 Shares in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Acquired by Zacks Investment Management

Zacks Investment Management acquired a new position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 4,712 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $288,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 82,223,697 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,027,979,000 after purchasing an additional 773,182 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,436,688 shares of the company's stock worth $1,002,479,000 after acquiring an additional 416,962 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at about $598,390,000. FMR LLC raised its stake in Kroger by 39.1% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,054,824 shares of the company's stock worth $431,402,000 after purchasing an additional 1,981,259 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Kroger by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,164,855 shares of the company's stock valued at $353,246,000 after purchasing an additional 37,222 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of Kroger stock traded down $1.02 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $71.96. 14,002,204 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,485,226. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $66.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $62.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.60. 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 fifty-two week low of $49.04 and a fifty-two week high of $73.63.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $34.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.96 billion. On average, equities analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.78%. Kroger's payout ratio is 34.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on KR. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Melius lowered Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $58.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Melius Research cut Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Roth Capital set a $58.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $66.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Gabriel Arreaga sold 13,867 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.82, for a total transaction of $995,927.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 75,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,402,156.76. This represents a 15.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total transaction of $72,030.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 10,473 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $754,370.19. This trade represents a 8.72 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 304,923 shares of company stock worth $20,705,024. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Kroger 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.