The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Purchased by Leavell Investment Management Inc.

Leavell Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 54.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,877 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,596 shares during the period. Leavell Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,075,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KR. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Kroger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $598,390,000. Steadfast Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $277,989,000. Junto Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $264,207,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $123,829,000. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 39.1% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,054,824 shares of the company's stock worth $431,402,000 after buying an additional 1,981,259 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Kroger Stock Performance

KR traded down $0.23 during trading on Friday, hitting $70.48. The stock had a trading volume of 4,192,063 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,901,518. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.20, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.59. The company's 50-day moving average price is $68.91 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.28. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $50.69 and a twelve month high of $74.11.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 analysts' expectations of $45.35 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.76% and a return on equity of 30.01%. Kroger's revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.43 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. 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%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is 34.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In other news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 31,271 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.08, for a total transaction of $2,160,200.68. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 82,684 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,711,810.72. This represents a 27.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gabriel Arreaga sold 37,960 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 75,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,448,791.92. This trade represents a 33.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 244,462 shares of company stock worth $17,649,963. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on KR. Melius Research upgraded shares of Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Kroger from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped 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. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Kroger presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.00.

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.