Junto Capital Management LP Purchases Shares of 4,320,630 The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Junto Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 4,320,630 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $264,207,000. Kroger accounts for about 5.1% of Junto Capital Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Junto Capital Management LP owned 0.60% of Kroger at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of KR. Game Creek Capital LP grew its holdings in shares of Kroger by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Game Creek Capital LP now owns 58,500 shares of the company's stock worth $3,577,000 after buying an additional 4,000 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth increased its stake in Kroger by 74.9% in the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 33,491 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,074,000 after purchasing an additional 14,344 shares during the last quarter. Fund 1 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $210,000. Eisler Capital Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter worth $5,605,000. Finally, Ensign Peak Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in Kroger by 19.8% in the fourth quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 1,249,092 shares of the company's stock valued at $76,382,000 after acquiring an additional 206,136 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Kroger Price Performance

KR traded down $1.13 on Wednesday, reaching $66.36. The company had a trading volume of 8,982,458 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,689,851. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.54. The Kroger Co. has a 52-week low of $49.04 and a 52-week high of $73.63. The company has a market cap of $43.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.62. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $68.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $63.62.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $34.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.96 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.93%. Kroger's payout ratio is 34.88%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on KR shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Citigroup upped their price objective on Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Guggenheim upped their price objective on Kroger from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Melius downgraded Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $58.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Kroger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $67.06.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.71, for a total transaction of $86,723.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 12,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at $806,523.90. This represents a 9.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 4,492 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.53, for a total transaction of $298,852.76. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $231,524.40. The trade was a 56.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 334,923 shares of company stock valued at $22,867,124 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.40% 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.