The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Sold by Janus Henderson Group PLC

Janus Henderson Group PLC cut its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 4.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 84,545 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,775 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC's holdings in Kroger were worth $5,172,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of KR. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $598,390,000. Junto Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $264,207,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $123,829,000. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 39.1% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,054,824 shares of the company's stock worth $431,402,000 after buying an additional 1,981,259 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 1,045.0% during the fourth quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 1,562,600 shares of the company's stock worth $95,553,000 after buying an additional 1,426,131 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kroger Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of KR stock opened at $68.79 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $63.89. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $49.04 and a fifty-two week high of $73.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.62.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $34.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is presently 34.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Roth Capital set a $58.00 price objective on Kroger in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $73.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Melius Research cut shares of Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $67.06.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kroger news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 28,105 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.62, for a total transaction of $1,872,355.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 52,861 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,521,599.82. This trade represents a 34.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 11,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.37, for a total value of $719,070.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 127,106 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,308,919.22. This trade represents a 7.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 334,923 shares of company stock worth $22,867,124 over the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Kroger 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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