The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Purchased by Kovack Advisors Inc.

Kovack Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 5.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,695 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Kroger were worth $409,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Kroger in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Adirondack Trust Co. boosted its position in Kroger by 1,628.1% in 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 during the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Up 1.4 %

NYSE:KR opened at $64.81 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $62.08 and a 200-day moving average of $58.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.90 billion, a PE ratio of 17.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.47. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $48.21 and a 52 week high of $66.26.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 EPS 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 the consensus estimate of $34.19 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The firm’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.95 EPS. Analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

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 given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.98%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.86%.

Kroger announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase 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 generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on KR shares. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and set a $61.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research note on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Kroger from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Kroger from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $70.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.19.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In related news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total transaction of $1,040,302.08. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 53,782 shares in the company, valued at $3,304,366.08. The trade was a 23.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total transaction of $8,379,373.86. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 217,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,743,103.14. The trade was a 37.88 % decrease in their position. 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 ninety days. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

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.