Moran Wealth Management LLC Invests $13.96 Million in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Moran Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 206,289 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,964,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in KR. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at $598,390,000. Steadfast Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at about $277,989,000. Junto Capital Management LP bought a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at about $264,207,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. acquired a new position in Kroger during the fourth quarter worth about $123,829,000. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 39.1% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,054,824 shares of the company's stock worth $431,402,000 after acquiring an additional 1,981,259 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kroger Stock Performance

NYSE:KR opened at $73.29 on Wednesday. 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 Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $49.04 and a fifty-two week high of $74.11. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $69.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $65.43. The company has a market capitalization of $48.44 billion, a PE ratio of 19.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.58.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $45.12 billion during 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 for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.43 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 31,271 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.08, for a total value of $2,160,200.68. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 82,684 shares in the company, valued at $5,711,810.72. This trade represents a 27.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Timothy A. Massa sold 8,415 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.00, for a total value of $622,710.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 118,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,788,314. This trade represents a 6.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 207,793 shares of company stock valued at $14,938,358 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KR has been the topic of several research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Melius upgraded shares of Kroger from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Evercore ISI dropped 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, June 17th. Roth Capital set a $58.00 price objective on Kroger in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their target price on Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $69.47.

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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