Ranmore Fund Management Ltd Makes New $9.54 Million Investment in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Ranmore Fund Management Ltd acquired a new stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 156,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,539,000. Kroger comprises approximately 8.8% of Ranmore Fund Management Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter worth about $598,390,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Kroger by 11,570.7% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,729,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $156,417,000 after purchasing an additional 2,706,398 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 39.1% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,054,824 shares of the company’s stock valued at $431,402,000 after buying an additional 1,981,259 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $68,581,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 48.0% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,359,918 shares of the company’s stock worth $205,459,000 after buying an additional 1,090,440 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Down 5.2 %

Shares of Kroger stock opened at $67.05 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $64.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $60.88. The Kroger Co. has a 52-week low of $49.04 and a 52-week high of $71.93. The company has a market cap of $48.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.74, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.60. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The business had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.96 billion. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

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 paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is currently 34.88%.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In related news, SVP Timothy A. Massa sold 29,554 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.56, for a total value of $1,967,114.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 103,092 shares in the company, valued at $6,861,803.52. This trade represents a 22.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Yael Cosset sold 115,149 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.08, for a total transaction of $7,839,343.92. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 139,338 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,486,131.04. This represents a 45.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 228,785 shares of company stock valued at $15,393,666. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KR has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Melius cut Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $58.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Melius Research lowered shares of Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.50.

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.