Joseph Group Capital Management Invests $3.53 Million in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 52,153 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,530,000. Kroger makes up about 1.3% of Joseph Group Capital Management's investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of KR. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 27.3% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 15,733 shares of the company's stock worth $962,000 after acquiring an additional 3,373 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at about $223,000. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its position in Kroger by 53,350.0% during the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 5,345 shares of the company's stock valued at $327,000 after buying an additional 5,335 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in Kroger by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 99,637 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,093,000 after buying an additional 1,430 shares during the period. Finally, Sage Mountain Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at about $286,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KR has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $74.00 price target (up from $66.00) on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Morgan Stanley set a $76.00 price target on Kroger and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Kroger from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group set a $83.00 price target on shares of Kroger and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $70.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Christine S. Wheatley sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $2,162,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 97,737 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,043,905.59. This represents a 23.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Gabriel Arreaga sold 37,960 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.44, for a total transaction of $2,749,822.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 75,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,448,791.92. The trade was a 33.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 244,462 shares of company stock valued at $17,649,963. 0.44% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Kroger Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:KR traded down $0.23 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $70.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,192,063 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,892,258. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $68.94 and a 200-day moving average of $66.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.20, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92. 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 released its 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 firm had revenue of $45.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $45.35 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.76% and a return on equity of 30.01%. The business's revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.43 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This is a boost from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.88%.

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.