PFG Investments LLC Takes Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

PFG Investments LLC acquired a new position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 6,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $379,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Kroger in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. SouthState Corp boosted its holdings in Kroger by 334.3% during the fourth quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 595 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 458 shares in the last quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC grew its position in Kroger by 370.1% in the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 630 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 496 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $224,070.87. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 3,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $214,889.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 30,251 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.98, for a total value of $1,693,450.98. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 105,298 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,894,582.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $224,070.87. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $214,889.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 55,796 shares of company stock valued at $3,118,767. 1.38% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on KR. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $58.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. BNP Paribas reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $48.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Kroger currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $55.17.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KR traded down $0.19 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $55.38. 4,464,792 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,888,630. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.81. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $54.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $48.45. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $42.10 and a 12 month high of $58.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.97 billion, a PE ratio of 18.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.48.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.21. Kroger had a return on equity of 31.44% and a net margin of 1.44%. The business had revenue of $37.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $37.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.99 EPS. Kroger’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is 39.19%.

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.