Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV Boosts Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV lifted its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,061 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 516 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV’s holdings in Kroger were worth $577,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in Kroger during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Kroger by 218.8% in the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 714 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Kroger in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In related news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total transaction of $167,730.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 74,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,142,036.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Kroger news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total transaction of $167,730.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 74,084 shares in the company, valued at $4,142,036.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total value of $167,265.70. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 47,593 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,644,743.01. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 12,932 shares of company stock valued at $721,243. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kroger Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of Kroger stock opened at $59.58 on Thursday. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $42.10 and a fifty-two week high of $60.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.87. The company has a market capitalization of $43.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.60, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a fifty day moving average of $56.04 and a 200 day moving average of $54.03.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $33.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 28.54% and a net margin of 1.86%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.96 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is currently 33.51%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KR has been the topic of a number of research reports. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. StockNews.com cut shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Melius Research assumed coverage on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kroger currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.09.

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.