Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Buys 211,400 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 10.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,154,946 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 211,400 shares during the quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board’s holdings in Kroger were worth $107,596,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of KR. Creekmur Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Kroger by 255.6% during the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 448 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 101.6% in the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 496 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total transaction of $167,265.70. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 47,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,644,743.01. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total value of $109,060.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $984,975.39. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total transaction of $167,265.70. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 47,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,644,743.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kroger Trading Up 1.0 %

NYSE KR opened at $55.39 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $39.98 billion, a PE ratio of 18.90, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.47. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $42.10 and a 12 month high of $58.34. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $53.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.43% and a return on equity of 29.89%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.96 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is an increase from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on KR. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Kroger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $58.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, September 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Kroger to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.09.

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.