KCM Investment Advisors LLC Acquires 773 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

KCM Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 3.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 24,270 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 773 shares during the period. KCM Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,391,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its stake in Kroger by 1.7% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 2,176,218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $124,697,000 after buying an additional 36,083 shares during the period. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the 2nd quarter valued at $10,336,000. Buck Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger in the second quarter worth $6,524,000. OLD National Bancorp IN increased its stake in Kroger by 82.2% in the second quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 132,857 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,634,000 after purchasing an additional 59,949 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wright Investors Service Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 63.0% during the third quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. now owns 38,934 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,231,000 after purchasing an additional 15,048 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of Kroger stock opened at $58.04 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $56.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $54.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $42.10 and a 12 month high of $60.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.48.

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

Kroger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. Kroger’s payout ratio is 33.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $784,715.40. This trade represents a 32.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total transaction of $167,730.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 74,084 shares in the company, valued at $4,142,036.44. The trade was a 3.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,932 shares of company stock valued at $721,243. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on KR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. StockNews.com lowered Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Argus lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Melius Research assumed coverage on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $55.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.09.

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.