AIA Group Ltd Takes Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

AIA Group Ltd bought a new position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 12,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $733,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KR. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Kroger in the third quarter worth approximately $40,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in Kroger by 218.8% during the 2nd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 714 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 3rd quarter valued at $44,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kroger Price Performance

KR stock opened at $59.91 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $55.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $54.00. The company has a market capitalization of $43.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.68, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.48. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $42.10 and a twelve month high of $60.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. Kroger had a net margin of 1.86% and a return on equity of 28.54%. The company had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.09 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.96 EPS. Kroger’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.51%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $784,715.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total value of $167,265.70. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 47,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,644,743.01. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,063 shares in the company, valued at $784,715.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,932 shares of company stock valued at $721,243. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on KR shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Melius Research assumed coverage on Kroger in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $55.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight 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 $60.09.

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.