Gabriel Arreaga Sells 13,867 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Stock

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) EVP Gabriel Arreaga sold 13,867 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.82, for a total transaction of $995,927.94. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 75,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,402,156.76. This trade represents a 15.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Gabriel Arreaga also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, March 19th, Gabriel Arreaga sold 15,959 shares of Kroger stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.63, for a total transaction of $1,047,389.17.

Kroger Price Performance

Kroger stock opened at $71.34 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $66.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $62.21. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $49.04 and a 12 month high of $73.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.15 billion, a PE ratio of 18.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.60.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released 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. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. The company had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.96 billion. Equities analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KR has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Guggenheim raised their price target on Kroger from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Melius Research cut Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Citigroup upped their price target on Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Melius cut shares of Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $58.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $73.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.50.

Institutional Trading of Kroger

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Kroger by 67.2% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,000 after acquiring an additional 537 shares during the period. Mendel Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 1.7% in the first quarter. Mendel Capital Management LLC now owns 32,373 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,191,000 after purchasing an additional 527 shares during the period. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Kroger by 137.8% during the first quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 14,292 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,029,000 after buying an additional 8,282 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its position in Kroger by 189.7% during the first quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 3,277 shares of the company’s stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 2,146 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Kroger by 31.6% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 374,961 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,550,000 after buying an additional 90,023 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.