The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Sold by Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas

Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas trimmed its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 12.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,658 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,429 shares during the period. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas’ holdings in Kroger were worth $807,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in KR. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. bought a new position in shares of Kroger in the 3rd quarter worth about $42,220,000. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc purchased a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,619,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Kroger by 378.8% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 765,445 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,988,000 after acquiring an additional 605,591 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 4,810.7% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 567,829 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,955,000 after acquiring an additional 556,266 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 30.2% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,364,536 shares of the company’s stock valued at $105,814,000 after acquiring an additional 548,240 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of Kroger stock traded up $0.54 on Wednesday, reaching $56.17. The stock had a trading volume of 1,092,161 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,915,047. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $42.10 and a fifty-two week high of $58.34. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $53.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $48.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market cap of $40.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.48.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.21. Kroger had a return on equity of 31.44% and a net margin of 1.44%. The firm had revenue of $37.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $37.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.99 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.43 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.07%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on KR shares. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $58.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, BNP Paribas reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.17.

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.