Drake & Associates LLC Increases Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Drake & Associates LLC grew its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 25.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 29,026 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,974 shares during the period. Kroger accounts for 0.6% of Drake & Associates LLC's holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Drake & Associates LLC's holdings in Kroger were worth $1,965,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Kroger during the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on KR. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $74.00 target price (up previously from $66.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Melius raised shares of Kroger from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Melius Research raised shares of Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price target 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 analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $70.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Yael Cosset sold 71,224 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 139,124 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,224,222.76. The trade was a 33.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Christine S. Wheatley sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were 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 owned 97,737 shares in the company, valued at $7,043,905.59. The trade was a 23.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 244,462 shares of company stock valued at $17,649,963 in the last ninety days. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kroger Stock Performance

KR stock traded up $0.46 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $70.20. 6,680,562 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,891,239. The firm has a market cap of $46.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.13, 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 simple moving average is $69.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.10. The Kroger Co. has a 1-year low of $50.69 and a 1-year high of $74.11.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 analyst estimates of $45.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.43 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 a positive change 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 payout ratio is presently 34.88%.

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.