DRH Investments Inc. Lowers Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

DRH Investments Inc. lessened its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 4.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 265,593 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,987 shares during the period. Kroger accounts for 14.3% of DRH Investments Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. DRH Investments Inc.’s holdings in Kroger were worth $13,261,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Kroger by 255.6% in the 1st quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 101.6% in the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 496 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the first quarter valued at $29,000. Creekmur Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of KR opened at $55.39 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $42.10 and a 1 year high of $58.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $53.84. The firm has a market cap of $39.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.47.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $33.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.43% and a return on equity of 29.89%. The firm’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.96 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on KR. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Kroger to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. StockNews.com cut shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised Kroger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $58.00 to $60.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.09.

Insider Activity at Kroger

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

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.