DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale Has $127.54 Million Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lessened its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 1.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,929,132 shares of the company's stock after selling 25,729 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale owned 0.29% of Kroger worth $127,538,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Kroger during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Kroger Stock Performance

KR stock traded up $0.14 on Wednesday, reaching $69.88. 2,202,553 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,873,572. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.18 billion, a PE ratio of 19.06, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $69.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.10. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $50.69 and a 12 month 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 the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. Kroger had a net margin of 1.76% and a return on equity of 30.01%. The company had revenue of $45.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $45.35 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.43 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.00%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is presently 34.88%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on KR. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $82.00 price target (up from $73.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, June 20th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 21st. Melius upgraded shares of Kroger from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $70.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 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 increased their price objective on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $70.00.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other news, EVP Gabriel Arreaga sold 37,960 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.44, for a total transaction of $2,749,822.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 75,218 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,448,791.92. This represents a 33.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Yael Cosset sold 71,224 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.49, for a total transaction of $5,234,251.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 139,124 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,224,222.76. This trade represents a 33.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 244,462 shares of company stock worth $17,649,963. Insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

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.