OLD National Bancorp IN Trims Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

OLD National Bancorp IN trimmed its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 7.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,966 shares of the company’s stock after selling 400 shares during the quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN’s holdings in Kroger were worth $227,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Kroger by 4,810.7% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 567,829 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,955,000 after purchasing an additional 556,266 shares during the last quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 284,094 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,715,000 after acquiring an additional 11,707 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 49.3% in the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 115,411 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,165,000 after acquiring an additional 38,119 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 156,275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,143,000 after acquiring an additional 17,380 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,647,862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,175,000 after acquiring an additional 115,264 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:KR opened at $55.49 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a 52-week low of $42.10 and a 52-week high of $58.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.48. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $54.24 and a 200-day moving average price of $48.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.21. Kroger had a return on equity of 31.44% and a net margin of 1.44%. The company had revenue of $37.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $37.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.99 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.19%.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In related news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total transaction of $224,070.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $214,889.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Kroger news, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 30,251 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.98, for a total transaction of $1,693,450.98. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 105,298 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,894,582.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $224,070.87. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 3,768 shares in the company, valued at $214,889.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 49,180 shares of company stock valued at $2,750,322 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on KR shares. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. BNP Paribas restated an “underperform” rating and set a $48.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, April 8th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $58.00 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.17.

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.