The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Purchased by Confluence Wealth Services Inc.

Confluence Wealth Services Inc. grew its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 137.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,292 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 8,282 shares during the quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc.'s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,029,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Kroger by 189.7% during the first quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 3,277 shares of the company's stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 2,146 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 31.6% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 374,961 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,550,000 after acquiring an additional 90,023 shares during the period. Vista Investment Partners II LLC boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Vista Investment Partners II LLC now owns 45,785 shares of the company's stock worth $3,099,000 after acquiring an additional 520 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Kroger by 11.6% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 105,668 shares of the company's stock worth $7,050,000 after acquiring an additional 11,024 shares during the period. Finally, Money Concepts Capital Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,248,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on KR shares. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $74.00 price target (up previously from $66.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $82.00 price target (up previously from $73.00) on shares of Kroger in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Melius raised shares of Kroger from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $70.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Kroger from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.00.

Kroger Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:KR traded up $0.12 during trading on Monday, reaching $71.54. The stock had a trading volume of 906,542 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,866,065. 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 stock has a market cap of $47.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.48, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.59. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $69.15 and a 200-day moving average price of $65.69. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $49.74 and a fifty-two week high of $74.11.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. Kroger had a return on equity of 30.01% and a net margin of 1.76%. The company had revenue of $45.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $45.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.43 EPS. Kroger's revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This is an increase from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.96%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is 34.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Timothy A. Massa sold 8,415 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.00, for a total transaction of $622,710.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 118,761 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,788,314. This represents a 6.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Christine S. Wheatley sold 30,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Friday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.44, for a total transaction of $2,083,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 127,737 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,870,057.28. This trade represents a 19.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 245,753 shares of company stock worth $17,688,180. 0.44% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.