Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Cuts Stock Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Key Points

• The Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund has reduced its stake in The Kroger Co. by 6.0%, now holding 268,983 shares valued at approximately $18.21 million.
• Kroger recently increased its quarterly dividend from $0.32 to $0.35 per share, indicating a commitment to returning value to shareholders with a dividend yield of 2.0%.
• Analyst ratings reflect a consensus of "Hold" with price targets ranging from $70 to $82, suggesting cautious optimism about the company's stock performance.

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund lowered its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 6.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 268,983 shares of the company's stock after selling 17,100 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund's holdings in Kroger were worth $18,207,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 27.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 15,733 shares of the company's stock valued at $962,000 after purchasing an additional 3,373 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at about $216,000. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Kroger by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 14,386 shares of the company's stock valued at $880,000 after acquiring an additional 1,548 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Kroger by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 11,016 shares of the company's stock valued at $674,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the period. Finally, Mariner LLC lifted its holdings in Kroger by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 128,100 shares of the company's stock worth $7,833,000 after buying an additional 4,140 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on KR. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $74.00 target price (up previously from $66.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Melius raised Kroger from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Barclays initiated coverage on Kroger in a research note on Monday, July 21st. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Kroger from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $76.00 target price on Kroger and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $70.53.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 3,810 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.61, for a total value of $272,834.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 85,850 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,147,718.50. This represents a 4.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gabriel Arreaga sold 37,960 shares of the firm's 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 75,218 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,448,791.92. The trade was a 33.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 198,948 shares of company stock valued at $14,422,926. 0.44% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Kroger Trading Down 4.3%

Shares of KR opened at $70.36 on Thursday. 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 firm's 50-day moving average is $70.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.15. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $50.69 and a twelve month high of $74.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.17, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.59.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $45.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $45.35 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.89% and a return on equity of 34.71%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.43 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 dividend yield of 2.0%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.15%.

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.

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