First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Trims Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. reduced its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 28,102 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,240 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,610,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in Kroger by 1.1% during the second quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC now owns 16,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $826,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 2.8% during the first quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 6,922 shares of the company’s stock worth $395,000 after buying an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Csenge Advisory Group grew its position in shares of Kroger by 4.3% during the first quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 4,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $263,000 after buying an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 1.2% during the first quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 17,112 shares of the company’s stock worth $975,000 after buying an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SignalPoint Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 3.2% during the third quarter. SignalPoint Asset Management LLC now owns 6,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $367,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Stock Performance

NYSE KR opened at $55.77 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $55.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $53.90. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $42.10 and a twelve month high of $58.34. The company has a market capitalization of $40.35 billion, a PE ratio of 14.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released 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 company had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 28.54% and a net margin of 1.86%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.96 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.30%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.51%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kroger news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total transaction of $386,247.60. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares in the company, valued at $784,715.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total transaction of $386,247.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares in the company, valued at $784,715.40. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 47,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,644,743.01. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KR has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Kroger in a report on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Argus boosted their price objective on Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Melius Research began coverage on Kroger in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.09.

Kroger 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.