The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Sold by Board of the Pension Protection Fund

Board of the Pension Protection Fund lowered its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 90.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,700 shares of the company's stock after selling 16,500 shares during the period. Board of the Pension Protection Fund's holdings in Kroger were worth $115,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of KR. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 5,541 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.79, for a total transaction of $392,247.39. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $246,349.20. The trade was a 61.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Christine S. Wheatley sold 30,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.44, for a total transaction of $2,083,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 127,737 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,870,057.28. The trade was a 19.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 245,753 shares of company stock worth $17,688,180. Corporate insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Kroger Trading Up 0.2%

Kroger stock opened at $71.40 on Friday. 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 cap of $47.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.58. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $49.41 and a 1 year high of $74.11. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $69.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $65.64.

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

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. This is a positive change from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.96%. Kroger's payout ratio is 34.88%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on KR. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $82.00 price target (up previously from $73.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, June 20th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on Kroger from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Kroger from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $70.00.

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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