Alberta Investment Management Corp Grows Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Key Points

• Alberta Investment Management Corp increased its stock holdings in The Kroger Co. by 66.7% during the first quarter, owning 43,500 shares worth approximately $2.95 million.
• Kroger's quarterly earnings were reported at $1.49 per share, exceeding analysts' estimates, although revenue saw a slight decline of 0.3% compared to the previous year.
• The company has announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.35, up from $0.32, representing an annualized dividend of $1.40 with a yield of 2.0%.

Alberta Investment Management Corp grew its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 66.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 43,500 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 17,400 shares during the period. Alberta Investment Management Corp's holdings in Kroger were worth $2,945,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 14,113,596 shares of the company's stock valued at $863,060,000 after purchasing an additional 120,250 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,829,401 shares of the company's stock valued at $478,768,000 after purchasing an additional 916,230 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 39.1% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,054,824 shares of the company's stock valued at $431,402,000 after purchasing an additional 1,981,259 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,363,964 shares of the company's stock valued at $389,156,000 after purchasing an additional 865,699 shares during the period. Finally, Steadfast Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at $277,989,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $71.42 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $69.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $67.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $50.69 and a 52 week high of $74.11.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $45.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $45.35 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.89% and a return on equity of 34.71%. The company's quarterly revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.43 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. This is an increase from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Kroger's payout ratio is currently 34.88%.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In related news, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 3,810 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.61, for a total value of $272,834.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 85,850 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,147,718.50. This represents a 4.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Mary Ellen Adcock sold 34,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.16, for a total transaction of $2,437,230.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 184,473 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,127,098.68. This represents a 15.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 198,948 shares of company stock valued at $14,422,926 in the last three months. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on KR shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Kroger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Kroger from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $82.00 price objective (up from $73.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Melius Research upgraded shares of Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $70.16.

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.

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