Yousif Capital Management LLC Raises Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Yousif Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 12.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 135,314 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 14,723 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC's holdings in Kroger were worth $6,185,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 370.1% in the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 630 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 430.8% in the 3rd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 637 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 517 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 613.0% in the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 820 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 705 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Command Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $224,070.87. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 3,768 shares of the company's stock, valued at $214,889.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $224,070.87. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 3,768 shares of the company's stock, valued at $214,889.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total value of $832,800.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 77,696 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,313,681.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 49,180 shares of company stock valued at $2,750,322 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.38% of the company's stock.

Kroger Stock Down 0.8 %

NYSE:KR traded down $0.42 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $55.49. 3,471,078 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,908,465. The business's 50-day moving average price is $54.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $48.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.48. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $42.10 and a 1 year high of $58.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.21. Kroger had a return on equity of 31.44% and a net margin of 1.44%. The business had revenue of $37.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $37.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.99 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KR has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Guggenheim raised their price target on Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Kroger from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price target for the company from $58.00 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. BNP Paribas restated an "underperform" rating and set a $48.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $62.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $55.17.

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.