Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC Sells 1,009 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC lowered its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 15.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,539 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,009 shares during the quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $339,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Adirondack Trust Co. grew its holdings in Kroger by 1,628.1% during the 4th quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 553 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 521 shares in the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Kroger by 218.8% during the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 714 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the third quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Kroger during the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Stock Performance

Kroger stock opened at $61.65 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $60.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $57.02. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $44.48 and a twelve month high of $63.59. The company has a market capitalization of $44.61 billion, a PE ratio of 16.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $33.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. Kroger’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.95 EPS. Research analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Saturday, March 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.08%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In related news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total value of $1,040,302.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 53,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,304,366.08. This trade represents a 23.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total transaction of $8,379,373.86. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 217,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,743,103.14. The trade was a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 195,448 shares of company stock valued at $12,143,923 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on KR shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $54.00 to $73.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. BNP Paribas started coverage on Kroger in a report on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $65.80.

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.