Raymond James & Associates Acquires 126,734 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 739,264 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 126,734 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in Kroger were worth $42,360,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in Kroger in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $10,336,000. Buck Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the second quarter valued at $6,524,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its position in Kroger by 53.3% in the first quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 9,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $528,000 after purchasing an additional 3,212 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Kroger by 18.8% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 820,623 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,882,000 after buying an additional 129,873 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OLD National Bancorp IN increased its holdings in Kroger by 82.2% in the 2nd quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 132,857 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,634,000 after buying an additional 59,949 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $784,715.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares in the company, valued at $784,715.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,932 shares of company stock worth $721,243 over the last 90 days. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Melius Research initiated coverage on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $55.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Argus raised their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, BNP Paribas started coverage on Kroger in a report on Friday, October 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kroger has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.09.

Kroger Stock Performance

Kroger stock opened at $56.43 on Wednesday. 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 simple moving average of $54.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $53.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.26, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.47.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.86% and a return on equity of 28.54%. Kroger’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.96 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.27%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.69%.

Kroger 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.