Janiczek Wealth Management LLC Raises Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Janiczek Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 17.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,684 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 699 shares during the quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $268,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of KR. Creekmur Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. SouthState Corp grew its position in Kroger by 334.3% during the fourth quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 595 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 458 shares during the period. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in Kroger by 370.1% in the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 630 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 613.0% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 820 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 705 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kroger Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $49.37 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The company has a 50-day moving average of $53.32 and a 200 day moving average of $50.86. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $42.10 and a 12-month high of $58.34. The stock has a market cap of $35.63 billion, a PE ratio of 16.85, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 20th. The company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $45.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $44.86 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 29.89% and a net margin of 1.43%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.51 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $1.28 per share. This is a boost from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $5.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.37%. Kroger’s payout ratio is presently 39.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on KR shares. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Kroger from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Kroger from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Kroger to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.30.

Insider Activity at Kroger

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

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.