Toroso Investments LLC increased its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR – Free Report) by 19.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 49,247 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,101 shares during the quarter. Toroso Investments LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $2,431,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of KR. Synovus Financial Corp raised its holdings in Kroger by 6.3% in the 1st quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 12,869 shares of the company’s stock worth $739,000 after purchasing an additional 764 shares during the period. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its holdings in Kroger by 30.2% in the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 29,150 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,672,000 after purchasing an additional 6,764 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL increased its stake in Kroger by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 14,673 shares of the company’s stock worth $842,000 after buying an additional 974 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC purchased a new stake in Kroger in the 1st quarter worth $1,443,000. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its stake in Kroger by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 7,703 shares of the company’s stock worth $442,000 after buying an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. 78.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Kroger Stock Performance
Kroger stock opened at $46.32 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $47.33 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.78. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $41.81 and a fifty-two week high of $50.41. The company has a market capitalization of $33.25 billion, a PE ratio of 20.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.48.
Kroger Cuts Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. Kroger’s payout ratio is 51.79%.
Insider Activity at Kroger
In related news, SVP Timothy A. Massa sold 23,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.46, for a total transaction of $1,045,580.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 194,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,862,699.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.38% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of brokerages have issued reports on KR. StockNews.com lowered Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 11th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Kroger from $51.00 to $48.00 in a research report on Monday, June 19th. 3M restated a “maintains” rating on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, June 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on Kroger from $54.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Friday, June 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Kroger from $56.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Friday, June 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $52.33.
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.
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