Insider Selling: The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) SVP Sells 132,627 Shares of Stock

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KRGet Free Report) SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total transaction of $8,379,373.86. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 217,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,743,103.14. This trade represents a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of KR stock opened at $61.18 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $44.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.19, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.48. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $44.07 and a fifty-two week high of $63.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.54. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $58.50 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.05.

Kroger (NYSE:KRGet Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.01. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. The company had revenue of $33.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.95 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is 33.86%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kroger

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in Kroger in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position 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 buying an additional 490 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Kroger in the third quarter worth about $43,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on KR shares. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Kroger from $59.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kroger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $64.31.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on Kroger

Kroger Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

Further Reading

Insider Buying and Selling by Quarter for Kroger (NYSE:KR)

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