Marietta Investment Partners LLC Buys New Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Marietta Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm purchased 85,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,764,000. Kroger makes up 1.4% of Marietta Investment Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Kroger in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 46.7% in the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 550 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the period. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Mary Ellen Adcock sold 34,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.16, for a total transaction of $2,437,230.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 184,473 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,127,098.68. The trade was a 15.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 16,475 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.79, for a total transaction of $1,215,690.25. Following the sale, the vice president owned 49,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,642,274.40. The trade was a 25.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 198,948 shares of company stock valued at $14,422,926 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Trading Down 1.3%

KR opened at $71.47 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a 1-year low of $50.69 and a 1-year high of $74.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.23 billion, a PE ratio of 19.47, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.59. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $69.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $66.99.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. Kroger had a net margin of 1.76% and a return on equity of 30.01%. The business had revenue of $45.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.43 earnings per share. Kroger’s revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is 38.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on KR shares. Morgan Stanley set a $76.00 target price on Kroger and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group set a $83.00 price objective on shares of Kroger and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Melius raised shares of Kroger from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $70.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $74.00 price target (up previously from $66.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $82.00 price objective (up from $73.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, June 20th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.16.

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.