UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Buys 865,699 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 15.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,363,964 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 865,699 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned 0.88% of Kroger worth $389,156,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KR has been the subject of a number of research reports. Roth Capital set a $58.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Citigroup increased their target price on Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Melius raised Kroger from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $73.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Melius Research raised Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $68.06.

Kroger Trading Up 1.0%

Kroger stock traded up $0.66 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $68.61. The stock had a trading volume of 5,516,759 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,665,649. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $68.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $64.27. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $49.04 and a 52 week high of $73.63. The stock has a market cap of $45.34 billion, a PE ratio of 18.15, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

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

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Gabriel Arreaga sold 13,867 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.82, for a total transaction of $995,927.94. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 75,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,402,156.76. The trade was a 15.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Christine S. Wheatley sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $2,162,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 97,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,043,905.59. The trade was a 23.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 334,923 shares of company stock valued at $22,867,124 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

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.