TRUE Private Wealth Advisors Buys 1,560 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

TRUE Private Wealth Advisors grew its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 15.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 11,570 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,560 shares during the period. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors’ holdings in Kroger were worth $529,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 370.1% during the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 630 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 496 shares during the period. KB Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its stake in Kroger by 430.8% in the third quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 637 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 517 shares during the period. Finally, Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of Kroger stock opened at $55.26 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $39.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $52.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $47.69. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $42.10 and a fifty-two week high of $58.34.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $37.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $37.07 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 31.44% and a net margin of 1.44%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.99 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm 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 $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.10%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on KR. Wells Fargo & Company raised Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $58.00 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday. Telsey Advisory Group upped their price target on Kroger from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. BNP Paribas reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Guggenheim boosted their target price 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. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.17.

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.