Kroger Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:KR)

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Investors bought 18,583 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 47% compared to the typical daily volume of 12,639 call options.

Kroger Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of KR stock traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $50.62. 1,210,502 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,253,999. Kroger has a 12-month low of $42.10 and a 12-month high of $58.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $53.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $50.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.45.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 20th. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $45.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $44.86 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.43% and a return on equity of 29.89%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.51 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Kroger will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a $1.28 dividend. This represents a $5.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.11%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 15th. This is a boost from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on KR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Kroger from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 21st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 20th. BNP Paribas restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, April 8th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Kroger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $58.00 to $60.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Kroger from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.30.

Insider Activity

In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $224,070.87. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $214,889.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $224,070.87. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $214,889.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 15,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total transaction of $832,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 77,696 shares in the company, valued at $4,313,681.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 55,796 shares of company stock worth $3,118,767 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kroger

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of KR. Mutual Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $249,000. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 14.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 65,935 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,951,000 after acquiring an additional 8,387 shares in the last quarter. Armistice Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $446,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in Kroger by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,619,742 shares of the company’s stock valued at $117,246,000 after purchasing an additional 50,177 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alps Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Kroger by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 7,423 shares of the company’s stock valued at $332,000 after purchasing an additional 678 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Company 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.