Verity Asset Management Inc. Has $258,000 Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Verity Asset Management Inc. reduced its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 44.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,517 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,578 shares during the quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Kroger were worth $258,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of KR. Sanders Capital LLC increased its stake in Kroger by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 23,786,389 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,087,276,000 after buying an additional 1,123,427 shares during the period. Capital World Investors grew its stake in Kroger by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 14,453,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $660,653,000 after purchasing an additional 214,852 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 12,592,371 shares of the company’s stock valued at $575,546,000 after buying an additional 503,839 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $229,863,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Kroger by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,610,352 shares of the company’s stock worth $210,739,000 after buying an additional 118,209 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KR traded down $0.76 on Friday, hitting $54.33. 4,284,804 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,950,304. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $52.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $52.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.54, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.86. The Kroger Co. has a one year low of $42.10 and a one year high of $58.34.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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. Kroger had a return on equity of 29.89% and a net margin of 1.43%. The firm had revenue of $45.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.86 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.51 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a $1.28 dividend. This is a boost from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $5.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.59%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total value of $109,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $984,975.39. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on KR shares. Wolfe Research raised shares of Kroger to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Kroger from $58.00 to $57.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Argus boosted their price target on Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $58.00 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Kroger from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $58.64.

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.