Auxier Asset Management Has $22.14 Million Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Auxier Asset Management lowered its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 362,110 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,153 shares during the quarter. Kroger accounts for about 3.4% of Auxier Asset Management's investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Auxier Asset Management owned about 0.05% of Kroger worth $22,143,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Kroger by 0.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,164,855 shares of the company's stock valued at $353,246,000 after buying an additional 37,222 shares in the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 27.4% in the fourth quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,665 shares of the company's stock worth $408,000 after purchasing an additional 1,434 shares in the last quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth $248,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 143,542 shares of the company's stock worth $8,778,000 after purchasing an additional 3,005 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mutual Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth $201,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KR has been the topic of a number of research reports. Roth Capital set a $58.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $73.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $68.06.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total value of $72,030.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 10,473 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $754,370.19. This represents a 8.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Christine S. Wheatley sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $2,162,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 97,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,043,905.59. This trade represents a 23.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 334,923 shares of company stock worth $22,867,124 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of KR stock traded down $0.18 on Wednesday, hitting $67.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,545,110 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,669,549. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.54. The stock's 50 day moving average is $68.98 and its 200-day moving average is $64.36. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $49.04 and a fifty-two week high of $73.63. The company has a market capitalization of $44.71 billion, a PE ratio of 17.90, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.62.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. The business had revenue of $34.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.96 billion. Equities research analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.89%. Kroger's payout ratio is 34.88%.

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.