The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) CFO Sells $1,040,302.08 in Stock

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) 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 transaction of $1,040,302.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 53,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,304,366.08. The trade was a 23.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Kroger Stock Performance

NYSE:KR opened at $61.85 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.48. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $44.48 and a 1 year high of $63.59. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $58.84 and a 200-day moving average of $55.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

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

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

Institutional Trading of Kroger

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of KR. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Kroger by 4.8% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 884,609 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,688,000 after acquiring an additional 40,914 shares during the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 13,057 shares of the company’s stock worth $748,000 after buying an additional 449 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 14.2% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,269,478 shares of the company’s stock worth $125,426,000 after buying an additional 281,878 shares during the last quarter. Tri Ri Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in Kroger in the third quarter valued at approximately $4,037,000. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp boosted its stake in Kroger by 3.7% in the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 10,797 shares of the company’s stock valued at $619,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Guggenheim started coverage on Kroger in a research note on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $65.43.

About Kroger

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.