Carin L. Fike Sells 16,475 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Stock

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) VP Carin L. Fike sold 16,475 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.79, for a total transaction of $1,215,690.25. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 49,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,642,274.40. This trade represents a 25.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Kroger Price Performance

KR opened at $73.29 on Wednesday. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $49.04 and a twelve month high of $74.11. The firm has a market cap of $48.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.97, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $69.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $65.43.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $45.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $45.35 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 30.01% and a net margin of 1.76%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.43 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on KR shares. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Kroger from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Kroger from $66.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Kroger from $71.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.47.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kroger

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Voya Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 208,073 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,084,000 after purchasing an additional 2,586 shares in the last quarter. 1248 Management LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger during the first quarter valued at approximately $631,000. First Hawaiian Bank bought a new position in Kroger during the 1st quarter worth approximately $383,000. Modern Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $654,000. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $62,730,000. 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.