Fmr LLC Reduces Stock Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Fmr LLC cut its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 3.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,073,565 shares of the company’s stock after selling 161,065 shares during the period. Fmr LLC owned about 0.70% of Kroger worth $290,715,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mendel Capital Management LLC grew its position in Kroger by 0.6% during the third quarter. Mendel Capital Management LLC now owns 31,559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,808,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the period. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 1.1% during the 2nd 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 period. SignalPoint Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Kroger by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. SignalPoint Asset Management LLC now owns 6,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $367,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Kroger by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 11,726 shares of the company’s stock worth $672,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares during the period. Finally, M3 Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in Kroger by 5.6% during the third quarter. M3 Advisory Group LLC now owns 4,285 shares of the company’s stock valued at $246,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $784,715.40. This represents a 32.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total transaction of $167,265.70. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 47,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,644,743.01. This represents a 5.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 12,932 shares of company stock worth $721,243. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on KR shares. BNP Paribas began coverage on Kroger in a research note on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of Kroger from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Melius Research began coverage on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $55.00 target price for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.60.

Kroger Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of KR stock opened at $61.08 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $57.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $54.41. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $42.97 and a 12-month high of $61.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (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 period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.96 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.10%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.51%.

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.