AIA Group Ltd Has $764,000 Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

AIA Group Ltd cut its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 2.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,499 shares of the company’s stock after selling 299 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in Kroger were worth $764,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Kroger by 26.5% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,451,923 shares of the company’s stock valued at $211,085,000 after buying an additional 722,135 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 361,015 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,076,000 after purchasing an additional 25,486 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 45,969 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,708,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Kroger during the fourth quarter worth about $755,000. Finally, Cambridge Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Kroger in the 4th quarter worth about $8,577,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Kroger from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Kroger from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.88.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.71, for a total value of $86,723.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 12,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $806,523.90. This represents a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 11,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.37, for a total value of $719,070.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 127,106 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,308,919.22. This trade represents a 7.96 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 223,244 shares of company stock worth $15,001,418 in the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Kroger Stock Up 1.6 %

KR stock opened at $67.77 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $64.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $60.52. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $49.04 and a twelve month high of $68.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.04 billion, a PE ratio of 17.93, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.51. 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 posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. The business had revenue of $34.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.96 billion. On average, equities analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is 34.88%.

Kroger declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.