Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. Lowers Stock Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. decreased its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 28.1% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 5,395 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,111 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Kroger were worth $269,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Hengehold Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 1.4% during the first quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC now owns 13,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $778,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC now owns 16,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $826,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 2.8% in the first quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 6,922 shares of the company’s stock valued at $395,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the period. W Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 0.6% during the first quarter. W Advisors LLC now owns 32,876 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,878,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Csenge Advisory Group lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 4.3% during the first quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 4,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $263,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $984,975.39. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on KR. StockNews.com cut shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Argus increased their price target on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised Kroger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $58.00 to $60.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.09.

Kroger Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of KR stock opened at $55.04 on Wednesday. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $42.10 and a fifty-two week high of $58.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $53.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $53.78. The stock has a market cap of $39.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.78, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 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 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 quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.96 earnings per share. 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is an increase from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.33%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.69%.

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.