The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Sold by Haverford Trust Co

Haverford Trust Co lessened its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 43.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,669 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,635 shares during the quarter. Haverford Trust Co’s holdings in Kroger were worth $286,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of KR. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in Kroger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Kroger in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 28,105 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.62, for a total transaction of $1,872,355.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 52,861 shares in the company, valued at $3,521,599.82. This trade represents a 34.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 11,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.37, for a total value of $719,070.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 127,106 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,308,919.22. This trade represents a 7.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 223,244 shares of company stock valued at $15,001,418. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Down 1.5 %

Kroger stock opened at $64.39 on Wednesday. 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 Kroger Co. has a one year low of $49.04 and a one year high of $68.51. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $63.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $60.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.51.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. As a group, equities 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 approved a stock repurchase 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 typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.99%. Kroger’s payout ratio is 34.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup boosted their price target on Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Roth Mkm lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $54.00 to $73.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $73.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.88.

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.