Mackenzie Financial Corp Has $33.68 Million Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Mackenzie Financial Corp reduced its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 12.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 674,521 shares of the company’s stock after selling 93,955 shares during the quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp’s holdings in Kroger were worth $33,679,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hengehold Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC now owns 13,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $778,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in Kroger by 1.1% during the second quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC now owns 16,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $826,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its position in Kroger by 2.8% during the first quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 6,922 shares of the company’s stock valued at $395,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Csenge Advisory Group grew its holdings in Kroger by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 4,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $263,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the period. Finally, Global Financial Private Client LLC raised its position in shares of Kroger by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 17,112 shares of the company’s stock worth $975,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kroger Trading Up 1.9 %

NYSE:KR opened at $56.52 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The Kroger Co. has a one year low of $42.10 and a one year high of $58.34. The company has a market cap of $40.89 billion, a PE ratio of 19.29, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.47. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $53.88 and a 200-day moving average of $53.93.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. Kroger had a return on equity of 28.54% and a net margin of 1.86%. The firm had revenue of $33.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.96 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is 43.69%.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In related news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total transaction of $167,730.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 74,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,142,036.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total transaction of $167,730.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 74,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,142,036.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, 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. Insiders sold a total of 8,010 shares of company stock worth $444,056 in the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Argus raised their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Kroger to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.36.

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.