The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Bought by RFG Advisory LLC

RFG Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 63.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,755 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,004 shares during the period. RFG Advisory LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $525,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 118.2% during the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 26,154 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,770,000 after acquiring an additional 14,168 shares during the period. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 1st quarter valued at about $203,000. NBC Securities Inc. grew its position in shares of Kroger by 108,369.2% during the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 14,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $954,000 after acquiring an additional 14,088 shares during the period. Fiduciary Alliance LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 4,937 shares of the company’s stock valued at $334,000 after acquiring an additional 347 shares during the period. Finally, Czech National Bank grew its position in shares of Kroger by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 152,882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,349,000 after acquiring an additional 8,565 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In related news, SVP Yael Cosset sold 115,149 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.08, for a total value of $7,839,343.92. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 139,338 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,486,131.04. This trade represents a 45.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,300 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.71, for a total transaction of $86,723.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 12,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $806,523.90. This trade represents a 9.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 306,818 shares of company stock worth $20,994,769 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Trading Down 0.2%

KR opened at $66.11 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $69.11 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $64.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The Kroger Co. has a 1-year low of $49.04 and a 1-year high of $73.63.

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

Kroger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Guggenheim raised their target price on Kroger from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Melius Research upgraded Kroger from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Roth Capital set a $58.00 price objective on Kroger in a report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.06.

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.