Axxcess Wealth Management LLC Buys New Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 5,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $257,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. bought a new position in Kroger during the third quarter valued at $42,220,000. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,619,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its position in Kroger by 378.8% during the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 765,445 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,988,000 after acquiring an additional 605,591 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Kroger by 4,810.7% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 567,829 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,955,000 after purchasing an additional 556,266 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 30.2% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,364,536 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,814,000 after acquiring an additional 548,240 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KR has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $58.00 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. BNP Paribas reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price target on Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $55.17.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In related news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 6,616 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.69, for a total transaction of $368,445.04. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,615,091.02. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total value of $832,800.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 77,696 shares in the company, valued at $4,313,681.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 6,616 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.69, for a total value of $368,445.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,615,091.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 55,796 shares of company stock worth $3,118,767. Insiders own 1.38% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Down 0.7 %

KR stock opened at $55.00 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $39.69 billion, a PE ratio of 18.58, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.49. The Kroger Co. has a one year low of $42.10 and a one year high of $58.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.81. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $55.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.87.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $37.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $37.07 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 31.44% and a net margin of 1.44%. The company’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.99 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.43 EPS for the current 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. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.11%. Kroger’s payout ratio is currently 39.19%.

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.