BCGM Wealth Management LLC Lowers Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

BCGM Wealth Management LLC cut its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 26.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 37,493 shares of the company’s stock after selling 13,260 shares during the period. BCGM Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $2,148,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in Kroger in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the third quarter worth $34,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the third quarter worth $40,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 218.8% during the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 714 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the third quarter valued at $43,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com lowered Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, October 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Melius Research started coverage on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $55.00 target price for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.09.

Insider Activity

In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total value of $167,265.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 47,593 shares in the company, valued at $2,644,743.01. This represents a 5.95 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total transaction of $167,730.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 74,084 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,142,036.44. The trade was a 3.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 12,932 shares of company stock worth $721,243 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Price Performance

NYSE KR opened at $58.02 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $56.39 and its 200 day moving average is $54.11. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $42.10 and a fifty-two week high of $60.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.87. The company has a market capitalization of $41.98 billion, a PE ratio of 15.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.48.

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

Kroger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.51%.

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.