Wesbanco Bank Inc. Takes $1.01 Million Position in The Kroger Co. $KR

Key Points

• Wesbanco Bank Inc. has acquired a new position in The Kroger Co., purchasing 14,010 shares valued at approximately $1.01 million.
• Analysts have recently set price targets for Kroger, with Guggenheim and Telsey Advisory Group rating it as a “buy” with target prices of $78.00 and $82.00 respectively.
• The Kroger Co. recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.35, an increase from the previous $0.32, with a current annual dividend yield of 2.1%.

Wesbanco Bank Inc. purchased a new position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 14,010 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,005,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of KR. IFC Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. IFC Advisors LLC now owns 8,642 shares of the company's stock valued at $585,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 8,049 shares of the company's stock valued at $545,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Gratus Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Gratus Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,182 shares of the company's stock valued at $757,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 46.7% in the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 550 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC now owns 7,187 shares of the company's stock valued at $486,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KR has been the topic of several analyst reports. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $78.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $82.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Thursday, September 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $75.00 target price (down from $82.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Melius Research upgraded Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $76.00 price objective on Kroger and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $70.58.

Kroger Trading Down 1.4%

NYSE:KR opened at $67.33 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85. The business's 50 day moving average is $70.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.95. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $54.56 and a 52 week high of $74.90. The company has a market cap of $44.50 billion, a PE ratio of 17.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.60.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, September 11th. The company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $33.94 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.08 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 32.62% and a net margin of 1.86%.Kroger's quarterly revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.93 EPS. Kroger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.700-4.800 EPS. On average, analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 16,475 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.79, for a total value of $1,215,690.25. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 49,360 shares in the company, valued at $3,642,274.40. This represents a 25.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 26,814 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the director owned 99,143 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,989,581.50. This trade represents a 21.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 198,948 shares of company stock valued at $14,422,926. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

About Kroger

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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