Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC Has $1.29 Million Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 7.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,055 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,600 shares during the period. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,290,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Kroger in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its stake in Kroger by 46.7% in the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new stake in Kroger in the 1st quarter valued at about $41,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 26,814 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.50, for a total value of $1,890,387.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 99,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,989,581.50. This trade represents a 21.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 16,475 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the vice president owned 49,360 shares in the company, valued at $3,642,274.40. This represents a 25.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 198,948 shares of company stock valued at $14,422,926 over the last three months. 0.44% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KR opened at $74.37 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $70.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $50.69 and a 1 year high of $74.90.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $45.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.35 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.89% and a return on equity of 34.71%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.43 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. This is a positive change from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is 34.88%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on KR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Kroger from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, July 21st. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Guggenheim increased 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, June 23rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $70.16.

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.