The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Position Increased by Canopy Partners LLC

Canopy Partners LLC grew its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 2,605.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 103,113 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 99,302 shares during the period. Kroger makes up 2.4% of Canopy Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Canopy Partners LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $6,305,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on KR. StockNews.com lowered Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Kroger from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $66.50.

Kroger Price Performance

NYSE KR opened at $67.05 on Monday. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $49.04 and a 12-month high of $71.93. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $64.99 and its 200-day moving average is $60.88. The company has a market capitalization of $48.52 billion, a PE ratio of 17.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

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

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 28,105 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 52,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,521,599.82. The trade was a 34.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 5,541 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.79, for a total transaction of $392,247.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $246,349.20. This represents a 61.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 228,785 shares of company stock valued at $15,393,666 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

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.