The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) is Point72 Asset Management L.P.’s 6th Largest Position

Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 96.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,381,311 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,643,811 shares during the quarter. Kroger accounts for approximately 0.7% of Point72 Asset Management L.P.’s holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Point72 Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in Kroger were worth $268,689,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Creekmur Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 255.6% during the 1st quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Kroger by 101.6% during the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 496 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in Kroger in the second quarter worth $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on KR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. StockNews.com lowered Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Melius Research began coverage on Kroger in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $55.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In other Kroger news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the company’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 transaction of $109,060.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 18,063 shares in the company, valued at $984,975.39. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 18,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $984,975.39. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total value of $167,265.70. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 47,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,644,743.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 8,010 shares of company stock worth $444,056 over the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Kroger Price Performance

KR stock opened at $56.52 on Monday. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $42.10 and a 12-month high of $58.34. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $53.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $53.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company has a market cap of $40.80 billion, a PE ratio of 19.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.47.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. Kroger had a return on equity of 28.54% and a net margin of 1.86%. The business had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.96 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

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 paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is currently 43.69%.

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.