The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Sold by Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 30.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 59,923 shares of the company's stock after selling 26,312 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Kroger were worth $4,056,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Brass Tax Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Kroger by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Brass Tax Wealth Management Inc. now owns 20,735 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,404,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Callan Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 10.3% in the 1st quarter. Callan Capital LLC now owns 4,716 shares of the company's stock valued at $319,000 after acquiring an additional 441 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 18.6% in the 1st quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 3,655 shares of the company's stock valued at $247,000 after acquiring an additional 574 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 110.8% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 751,845 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,892,000 after acquiring an additional 395,098 shares during the period. Finally, Drake & Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 25.9% in the 1st quarter. Drake & Associates LLC now owns 29,026 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,965,000 after acquiring an additional 5,974 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kroger Trading Down 0.3%

Kroger stock traded down $0.23 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $70.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,192,063 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,901,518. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.58 billion, a PE ratio of 19.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.59. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $50.69 and a 1 year high of $74.11. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92. The stock's fifty day moving average is $68.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.25.

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

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This is a boost from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.99%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Mary Ellen Adcock sold 34,250 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.16, for a total transaction of $2,437,230.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 184,473 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,127,098.68. The trade was a 15.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 16,475 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.79, for a total value of $1,215,690.25. Following the sale, the vice president owned 49,360 shares in the company, valued at $3,642,274.40. This trade represents a 25.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 244,462 shares of company stock valued at $17,649,963 over the last 90 days. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Guggenheim upped their target price on Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $74.00 price target (up previously from $66.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group set a $83.00 target price on Kroger and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 21st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $70.00.

About Kroger

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.