National Pension Service Has $90.71 Million Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Key Points

• The National Pension Service increased its holdings of The Kroger Co. by 1.1%, owning over 1.34 million shares valued at approximately $90.7 million.
• Kroger announced a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, up from the previous $0.32, resulting in an annualized yield of 2.0%.
• Analyst ratings for Kroger have been mixed, with an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $70.53 from various investment analysts.

National Pension Service boosted its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 1.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,340,103 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,073 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned approximately 0.20% of Kroger worth $90,712,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KR. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Kroger by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 14,113,596 shares of the company's stock worth $863,060,000 after acquiring an additional 120,250 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Kroger by 13.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,829,401 shares of the company's stock worth $478,768,000 after purchasing an additional 916,230 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in Kroger by 15.7% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,363,964 shares of the company's stock worth $389,156,000 after purchasing an additional 865,699 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Kroger by 0.6% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,067,209 shares of the company's stock worth $342,999,000 after purchasing an additional 31,477 shares during the period. Finally, Steadfast Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $277,989,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on KR shares. Melius Research raised shares of Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $83.00 price objective on shares of Kroger and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Kroger from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Barclays began coverage on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, July 21st. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $75.00 price target for the company. Finally, UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $74.00 price target (up from $66.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $70.53.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 26,814 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.50, for a total value of $1,890,387.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 99,143 shares in the company, valued at $6,989,581.50. This represents a 21.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 16,475 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.79, for a total value of $1,215,690.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 49,360 shares in the company, valued at $3,642,274.40. This represents a 25.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 198,948 shares of company stock worth $14,422,926 over the last ninety days. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kroger Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE KR traded up $0.44 on Friday, hitting $69.67. 4,419,464 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,641,129. The company's 50 day moving average price is $70.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $68.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $45.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $45.35 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 34.71% and a net margin of 1.89%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.43 EPS. Analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is a positive change from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is currently 38.15%.

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.