Laurion Capital Management LP Takes $26.30 Million Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Laurion Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 430,010 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,295,000. Kroger comprises about 0.5% of Laurion Capital Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Laurion Capital Management LP owned 0.06% of Kroger at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 18,045 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,103,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 6,704 shares of the company’s stock valued at $410,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH raised its position in Kroger by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 23,410 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,432,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valmark Advisers Inc. raised its position 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 last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other Kroger news, EVP Christine S. Wheatley sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $2,162,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 97,737 shares in the company, valued at $7,043,905.59. The trade was a 23.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gabriel Arreaga sold 13,867 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.82, for a total transaction of $995,927.94. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 75,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,402,156.76. This represents a 15.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 334,923 shares of company stock worth $22,867,124. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Kroger Price Performance

Kroger stock opened at $72.00 on Monday. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $49.04 and a 1 year high of $73.63. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $68.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $63.49. The company has a market cap of $47.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.05, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.54.

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

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. Kroger’s payout ratio is 34.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on KR. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of Kroger from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Roth Capital set a $58.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.06.

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.