HighPoint Advisor Group LLC Purchases New Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 13,727 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $627,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Belpointe Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Kroger by 2.0% during the third quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 12,405 shares of the company’s stock valued at $555,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Kroger by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 14,134 shares of the company’s stock valued at $646,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Mendel Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Kroger by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Mendel Capital Management LLC now owns 33,132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,514,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Kroger by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 17,507 shares of the company’s stock valued at $800,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Toroso Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Kroger by 0.6% during the third quarter. Toroso Investments LLC now owns 47,930 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,145,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $214,889.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total value of $832,800.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 77,696 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,313,681.92. 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 on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $224,070.87. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $214,889.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 55,796 shares of company stock valued at $3,118,767. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday. BNP Paribas reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $58.00 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets raised Kroger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $58.00 to $60.00 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their target price on Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.18.

Kroger Stock Up 1.8 %

NYSE:KR opened at $51.98 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $53.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $50.66. The Kroger Co. has a 52-week low of $42.10 and a 52-week high of $58.34. 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 has a market cap of $37.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.43.

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.