Carin L. Fike Sells 3,010 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Stock

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total transaction of $167,265.70. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 47,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,644,743.01. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KR opened at $54.83 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $53.60 and a 200 day moving average of $53.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market cap of $39.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.47. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $42.10 and a 12 month high of $58.34.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. Kroger had a net margin of 1.43% and a return on equity of 29.89%. The firm had revenue of $33.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.96 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. This is a boost from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.69%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KR has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Wolfe Research raised Kroger to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 21st. Argus boosted their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. StockNews.com downgraded Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised Kroger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $58.00 to $60.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.09.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of KR. Creekmur Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Kroger by 255.6% during the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 448 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Kroger by 101.6% during 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 last quarter. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Kroger during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% 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.