Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Cuts Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Key Points

• Maryland State Retirement & Pension System reduced its holdings in The Kroger Co. by 12.5%, selling 4,412 shares in the first quarter, bringing its total ownership to 31,014 shares valued at $2,099,000.
• Kroger recently announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.32 to $0.35, with an annualized yield of 1.9% and a payout ratio of 34.88%.
• After releasing its latest earnings report, Kroger's stock has shown positive analyst sentiment with a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $70.16.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lessened its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 12.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 31,014 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,412 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in Kroger were worth $2,099,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted 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 purchasing an additional 3,373 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP bought a new position in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $801,000. Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its position in Kroger by 82.9% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 170,639 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,435,000 after purchasing an additional 77,361 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. bought a new position in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $216,000. Finally, Capital Fund Management S.A. lifted its position in Kroger by 43.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital Fund Management S.A. now owns 173,331 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,599,000 after purchasing an additional 52,290 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Kroger Trading Down 4.2%

Shares of KR stock traded down $3.07 on Wednesday, hitting $70.48. 10,589,808 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,093,312. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $70.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.13. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $46.58 billion, a PE ratio of 19.16, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.59. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $50.69 and a twelve month high of $74.90.

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

Kroger Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Mary Ellen Adcock sold 34,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.16, for a total transaction of $2,437,230.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 184,473 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,127,098.68. This represents a 15.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 26,814 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.50, for a total transaction of $1,890,387.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 99,143 shares in the company, valued at $6,989,581.50. This represents a 21.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 198,948 shares of company stock valued at $14,422,926 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KR has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, July 21st. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $75.00 target price for the company. Melius Research raised shares of Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $82.00 target price (up from $73.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, June 20th. Finally, Melius raised shares of 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. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $70.53.

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.