Private Advisor Group LLC Has $1.03 Million Stock Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Private Advisor Group LLC decreased its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 16.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,951 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,430 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,029,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KR. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 32.0% in the 1st quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 14,869 shares of the company’s stock worth $848,000 after buying an additional 3,605 shares in the last quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the 1st quarter worth approximately $212,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 185,112 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,575,000 after buying an additional 22,946 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 86.4% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,274,995 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,840,000 after buying an additional 590,818 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on KR shares. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on 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 Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Argus raised their price objective on Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.09.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total value of $167,730.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 74,084 shares in the company, valued at $4,142,036.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Kroger news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total value of $167,730.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 74,084 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,142,036.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 47,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,644,743.01. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,932 shares of company stock worth $721,243. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of Kroger stock opened at $56.57 on Friday. 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 Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $42.10 and a twelve month high of $58.34. The stock has a market cap of $40.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.81, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.47. The company’s fifty day moving average is $55.23 and its 200 day moving average is $53.91.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. Kroger had a net margin of 1.86% and a return on equity of 28.54%. 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 prior year, the firm posted $0.96 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.51%.

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.