The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Position Trimmed by Global Retirement Partners LLC

Global Retirement Partners LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 14.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,028 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $369,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of KR. Valmark Advisers Inc. raised its stake in Kroger by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 4,260 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. Nexus Investment Management ULC grew its holdings in shares of Kroger by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Nexus Investment Management ULC now owns 48,115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,942,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. raised its position in shares of Kroger by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 4,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $278,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the period. Mendel Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Mendel Capital Management LLC now owns 31,559 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,808,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cooper Financial Group boosted its position in Kroger by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 5,366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $328,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kroger Stock Performance

NYSE:KR opened at $64.80 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $61.82 and a 200-day moving average of $58.33. The firm has a market cap of $46.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $47.15 and a twelve month high of $66.18.

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

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is 33.86%.

Kroger announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on KR shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group lifted 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price objective on Kroger from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.19.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In related news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total value of $1,040,302.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 53,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,304,366.08. This represents a 23.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $13,743,103.14. The trade was a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 195,448 shares of company stock worth $12,143,923 in the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.