The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Stock Holdings Increased by Ritholtz Wealth Management

Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 9.6% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 48,937 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 4,279 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Kroger were worth $2,804,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of KR. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in Kroger in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $10,336,000. Buck Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the 2nd quarter valued at about $6,524,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 53.3% in the first quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 9,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $528,000 after purchasing an additional 3,212 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 18.8% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 820,623 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,882,000 after purchasing an additional 129,873 shares during the period. Finally, OLD National Bancorp IN increased its stake in Kroger by 82.2% in the 2nd quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 132,857 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,634,000 after buying an additional 59,949 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on KR. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Wolfe Research upgraded Kroger to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Argus upped their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Melius Research began coverage on Kroger in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $55.00 price objective on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kroger currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total transaction of $167,730.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 74,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,142,036.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total value of $109,060.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $984,975.39. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total value of $167,730.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 74,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,142,036.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 14,932 shares of company stock worth $830,303 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of Kroger stock opened at $55.36 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a 1-year low of $42.10 and a 1-year high of $58.34. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $54.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $53.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.49, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.47.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 28.54% and a net margin of 1.86%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.96 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.51%.

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.