Voya Investment Management LLC Has $12.57 Million Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Voya Investment Management LLC cut its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 205,487 shares of the company's stock after selling 12,366 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC's holdings in Kroger were worth $12,566,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in KR. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in Kroger during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Kroger Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of Kroger stock traded down $0.19 on Friday, reaching $71.99. The company had a trading volume of 6,206,369 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,599,470. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $67.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $62.75. The Kroger Co. has a 52-week low of $49.04 and a 52-week high of $73.63. The firm has a market cap of $47.58 billion, a PE ratio of 19.05, a PEG 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.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $34.31 billion during 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on KR shares. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Melius cut Kroger from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $58.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kroger has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $67.06.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In other Kroger news, EVP Christine S. Wheatley sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total transaction of $72,030.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 10,473 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $754,370.19. This trade represents a 8.72 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 334,923 shares of company stock valued at $22,867,124. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

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.