The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Sold by Aviva PLC

Aviva PLC trimmed its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 33.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 413,790 shares of the company’s stock after selling 203,587 shares during the period. Aviva PLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $25,303,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its stake in Kroger by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 18,045 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,103,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC grew its position in Kroger by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 6,704 shares of the company’s stock worth $410,000 after buying an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Kroger by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 7,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $479,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 23,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,432,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valmark Advisers Inc. lifted 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 purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Down 5.2 %

KR opened at $67.05 on Monday. 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 company’s 50-day moving average price is $64.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $60.88. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $49.04 and a twelve month high of $71.93. The stock has a market cap of $48.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.74, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.60.

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

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.88%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KR has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com cut Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Roth Capital set a $58.00 target price on Kroger in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Melius lowered shares of Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $58.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $66.50.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other news, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 11,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.37, for a total transaction of $719,070.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 127,106 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,308,919.22. This trade represents a 7.96 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 28,105 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.62, for a total transaction 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 approximately $3,521,599.82. This trade represents a 34.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 228,785 shares of company stock valued at $15,393,666. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Company 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.