Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Has $58.09 Million Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 949,956 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 12,577 shares during the quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned about 0.13% of Kroger worth $58,091,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kroger Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of KR stock traded down $0.01 during trading on Thursday, hitting $72.20. 5,496,953 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,597,045. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.60. 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 business's 50-day simple moving average is $67.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $62.63. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $49.04 and a twelve month high of $73.63.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $34.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. As a group, analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.88%.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In related news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 28,105 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.62, for a total value of $1,872,355.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 52,861 shares in the company, valued at $3,521,599.82. This trade represents a 34.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Christine S. Wheatley sold 30,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.44, for a total value of $2,083,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 127,737 shares in the company, valued at $8,870,057.28. The trade was a 19.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 334,923 shares of company stock valued at $22,867,124. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Melius Research cut Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. StockNews.com cut shares of Kroger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Melius lowered shares of Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $58.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $67.06.

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.