Geode Capital Management LLC Buys 416,962 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,436,688 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 416,962 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 2.27% of Kroger worth $1,002,479,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Kroger during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $67.30 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The firm has a market cap of $48.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.51. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $64.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $60.65. The Kroger Co. has a one year low of $49.04 and a one year high of $68.68.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. The business had revenue of $34.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.96 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $7.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 11,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.37, for a total transaction of $719,070.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 127,106 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,308,919.22. This represents a 7.96 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 12,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $806,523.90. This represents a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 223,244 shares of company stock valued at $15,001,418 over the last 90 days. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group lifted their target price on Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Kroger from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Kroger from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.39.

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.