The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) is Rogco LP’s 10th Largest Position

Rogco LP lessened its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 101,868 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the quarter. Kroger accounts for 2.5% of Rogco LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Rogco LP’s holdings in Kroger were worth $6,229,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in KR. Valmark Advisers Inc. boosted its stake in Kroger by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 4,260 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at $771,000. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in Kroger by 239.0% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 32,511 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,910,000 after buying an additional 22,920 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Kroger by 20.9% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 7,415 shares of the company’s stock worth $453,000 after acquiring an additional 1,280 shares during the period. Finally, Everhart Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 12.2% during the 4th quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 8,343 shares of the company’s stock worth $510,000 after acquiring an additional 908 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kroger Trading Down 0.7 %

NYSE KR opened at $65.20 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.25, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.47. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $61.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $57.85. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $45.88 and a 12 month high of $66.18.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $33.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.95 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.86%.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other Kroger news, SVP Yael Cosset sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total value of $1,167,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 144,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,444,361.80. This trade represents a 12.15 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total value of $8,379,373.86. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 217,523 shares in the company, valued at $13,743,103.14. This represents a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 195,448 shares of company stock worth $12,143,923 in the last three months. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on KR shares. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $61.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, January 24th. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.19.

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.