Power Wealth Management LLC Takes Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Power Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 16,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $766,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of KR. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Kroger by 4,810.7% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 567,829 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,955,000 after buying an additional 556,266 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 284,094 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,715,000 after acquiring an additional 11,707 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in Kroger by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 156,275 shares of the company's stock worth $7,143,000 after acquiring an additional 17,380 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Kroger by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,647,862 shares of the company's stock worth $75,175,000 after purchasing an additional 115,264 shares during the period. Finally, Impax Asset Management Group plc increased its stake in Kroger by 58.9% in the fourth quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 102,194 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,671,000 after purchasing an additional 37,892 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $62.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Kroger from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the stock 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 note on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $55.17.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 3,768 shares in the company, valued at $214,889.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 15,000 shares of Kroger 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 77,696 shares in the company, valued at $4,313,681.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total transaction of $224,070.87. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 3,768 shares in the company, valued at $214,889.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 55,796 shares of company stock valued at $3,118,767. Company insiders own 1.38% of the company's stock.

Kroger Stock Down 0.6 %

NYSE:KR traded down $0.31 on Friday, hitting $54.78. The stock had a trading volume of 4,937,997 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,340,941. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $42.10 and a 1 year high of $58.34. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $54.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $48.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market cap of $39.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.49.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.34 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 company had revenue of $37.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $37.07 billion. Kroger's revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.99 earnings per share. Analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.12%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.19%.

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.