Captrust Financial Advisors Grows Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Captrust Financial Advisors grew its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 15.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,441,580 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 332,169 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors owned 0.34% of Kroger worth $149,303,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of KR. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its stake in Kroger by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 18,045 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,103,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 6,704 shares of the company's stock valued at $410,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Kroger by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 7,834 shares of the company's stock worth $479,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Keybank National Association OH lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 23,410 shares of the company's stock worth $1,432,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valmark Advisers Inc. boosted its stake in Kroger by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 4,260 shares of the company's stock valued at $260,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kroger Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of KR stock traded down $0.52 on Thursday, reaching $71.87. 5,501,753 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,618,300. The Kroger Co. has a one year low of $49.04 and a one year high of $73.63. The company has a market cap of $47.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.01, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a 50-day moving average of $67.96 and a 200-day moving average of $63.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $34.96 billion. Analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is 34.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 12,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $806,523.90. The trade was a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Christine S. Wheatley sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $2,162,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 97,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,043,905.59. This trade represents a 23.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 334,923 shares of company stock worth $22,867,124 over the last three months. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on KR shares. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Melius cut Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $58.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. StockNews.com lowered Kroger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Melius Research lowered shares of Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $67.06.

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.