IFM Investors Pty Ltd Buys 27,869 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd lifted its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 28.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 126,904 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 27,869 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd's holdings in Kroger were worth $8,590,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Kroger by 27.3% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 15,733 shares of the company's stock valued at $962,000 after buying an additional 3,373 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at about $70,000. Keybank National Association OH boosted its holdings in Kroger by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 23,410 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,432,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in Kroger by 239.9% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 13,481 shares of the company's stock worth $824,000 after acquiring an additional 9,515 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atria Investments Inc increased its stake in Kroger by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 43,599 shares of the company's stock worth $2,666,000 after purchasing an additional 910 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In related news, EVP Mary Ellen Adcock sold 34,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.16, for a total value of $2,437,230.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 184,473 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,127,098.68. This trade represents a 15.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Yael Cosset sold 71,224 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.49, for a total value of $5,234,251.76. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 139,124 shares in the company, valued at $10,224,222.76. This trade represents a 33.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 244,462 shares of company stock worth $17,649,963. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KR has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley set a $76.00 price objective on shares of Kroger and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Guggenheim increased 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. Jefferies Financial Group set a $83.00 target price on Kroger and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 21st. Finally, Melius Research upgraded shares of Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. 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, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $70.00.

Kroger Stock Up 2.3%

NYSE:KR traded up $1.62 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $71.45. 5,963,032 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,880,805. The Kroger Co. has a one year low of $50.69 and a one year high of $74.11. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $69.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.00. The company has a market cap of $47.22 billion, a PE ratio of 19.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 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.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. Kroger had a return on equity of 30.01% and a net margin of 1.76%. The firm had revenue of $45.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $45.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.43 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. This is a positive change from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is presently 34.88%.

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.