Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Boosts Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 3.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 183,732 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 5,477 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Kroger were worth $12,437,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of KR. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Kroger by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 82,223,697 shares of the company's stock worth $5,027,979,000 after purchasing an additional 773,182 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,436,688 shares of the company's stock worth $1,002,479,000 after purchasing an additional 416,962 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 14,113,596 shares of the company's stock worth $863,060,000 after buying an additional 120,250 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at about $598,390,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Kroger by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,829,401 shares of the company's stock worth $478,768,000 after buying an additional 916,230 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on KR. Melius upgraded shares of Kroger from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $70.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $73.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Citigroup upped their price target on Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on Kroger from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $68.11.

Insider Activity

In other Kroger news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 31,271 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.08, for a total transaction of $2,160,200.68. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 82,684 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,711,810.72. The trade was a 27.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total value of $72,030.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 10,473 shares of the company's stock, valued at $754,370.19. The trade was a 8.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 122,679 shares of company stock worth $8,584,776. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Kroger Price Performance

Kroger stock opened at $65.38 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $43.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.81, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.13. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $65.08. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $49.04 and a 52 week high of $73.63.

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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