Procyon Advisors LLC Grows Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Procyon Advisors LLC raised its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 144.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 14,052 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 8,295 shares during the period. Procyon Advisors LLC's holdings in Kroger were worth $951,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KR. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on KR shares. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Melius Research raised shares of Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Kroger from $65.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $73.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $68.06.

Kroger Stock Down 0.2%

KR stock opened at $66.11 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $69.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.82. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $49.04 and a twelve month high of $73.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.69 billion, a PE ratio of 17.49, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. The company had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.96 billion. On average, equities analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.88%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Christine S. Wheatley sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total value of $2,162,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 97,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,043,905.59. This trade represents a 23.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total transaction of $72,030.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 10,473 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $754,370.19. This represents a 8.72% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 306,818 shares of company stock worth $20,994,769 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

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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