The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Position Decreased by Prosperity Consulting Group LLC

Prosperity Consulting Group LLC reduced its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 2.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,893 shares of the company’s stock after selling 580 shares during the quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,820,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in KR. TCW Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the first quarter valued at $679,000. LPL Financial LLC raised its holdings in Kroger by 11.4% during the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 563,524 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,145,000 after buying an additional 57,619 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in Kroger by 6.0% during the first quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 307,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,813,000 after buying an additional 17,385 shares in the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda boosted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 75.0% in the first quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda now owns 3,518 shares of the company’s stock worth $238,000 after buying an additional 1,508 shares during the period. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 1.9% in the first quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 32,790 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,220,000 after buying an additional 613 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of KR opened at $69.32 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $50.69 and a 12 month high of $74.11. The company’s fifty day moving average is $69.31 and its 200-day moving average is $67.18. The firm has a market cap of $45.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.59.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. The company 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 business’s revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.43 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This is an increase from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.88%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KR has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $82.00 price target (up previously from $73.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, June 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. 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. Jefferies Financial Group set a $83.00 target price on Kroger and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Guggenheim raised their target price on Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.16.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Yael Cosset sold 71,224 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.49, for a total value of $5,234,251.76. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 139,124 shares in the company, valued at $10,224,222.76. This trade represents a 33.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 26,814 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.50, for a total transaction of $1,890,387.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 99,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,989,581.50. This represents a 21.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 198,948 shares of company stock valued at $14,422,926. 0.44% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.