The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) SVP Sells $1,693,450.98 in Stock

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 30,251 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.98, for a total value of $1,693,450.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 105,298 shares in the company, valued at $5,894,582.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of KR opened at $55.49 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $40.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.75, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.48. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $54.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $48.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $42.10 and a 12 month high of $58.34.

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

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on KR. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday. Guggenheim upped their target price on Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. BNP Paribas reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $48.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.17.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of KR. IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 10.7% during the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 5,767 shares of the company’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 558 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC grew its holdings in Kroger by 18.2% during the third quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 17,808 shares of the company’s stock worth $797,000 after acquiring an additional 2,743 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in Kroger during the third quarter worth about $496,000. Czech National Bank grew its holdings in Kroger by 49.3% during the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 115,411 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,165,000 after acquiring an additional 38,119 shares during the period. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Kroger by 0.3% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 487,153 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,800,000 after acquiring an additional 1,572 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.