Leavell Investment Management Inc. Sells 19,092 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Leavell Investment Management Inc. decreased its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 76.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,897 shares of the company's stock after selling 19,092 shares during the quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Kroger were worth $337,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hengehold Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Kroger by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC now owns 13,626 shares of the company's stock valued at $778,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. grew its position in Kroger by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 8,839 shares of the company's stock valued at $396,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the period. Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its position in Kroger by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 12,405 shares of the company's stock valued at $555,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the period. Level Four Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Kroger by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 14,134 shares of the company's stock valued at $646,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares during the period. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Kroger by 101.6% in the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 496 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KR traded down $0.61 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $53.31. 6,664,905 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,940,257. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $42.10 and a 12-month 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. The company has a market cap of $38.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.91, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.49. The business's fifty day moving average price is $55.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $49.56.

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

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on KR. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. StockNews.com raised shares of Kroger from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Kroger from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $58.00 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, BNP Paribas reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, April 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $55.17.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 30,251 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.98, for a total transaction of $1,693,450.98. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 105,298 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,894,582.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 30,251 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.98, for a total transaction of $1,693,450.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 105,298 shares in the company, valued at $5,894,582.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total value of $832,800.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 55,796 shares of company stock valued at $3,118,767. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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