Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Cuts Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lowered its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 6.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 35,426 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,484 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Kroger were worth $2,166,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KR. Prospera Financial Services Inc grew its holdings in Kroger by 49.4% during the 3rd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 24,153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,384,000 after buying an additional 7,989 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Kroger by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,306 shares of the company’s stock valued at $361,000 after buying an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new position in Kroger during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,783,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in Kroger by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 205,421 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,771,000 after buying an additional 9,190 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its holdings in Kroger by 492.8% during the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 385,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,113,000 after buying an additional 320,816 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,300 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.71, for a total value of $86,723.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 12,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $806,523.90. This trade represents a 9.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 28,105 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.62, for a total value of $1,872,355.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 52,861 shares in the company, valued at $3,521,599.82. This represents a 34.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 212,244 shares of company stock valued at $14,282,348 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $64.69 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $63.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.78. The firm has a market cap of $46.81 billion, a PE ratio of 17.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.51. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $49.04 and a twelve month high of $68.51.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. Analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Roth Capital set a $58.00 target price on Kroger in a report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Kroger from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $73.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Seven research 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.88.

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.