ING Groep NV Cuts Stock Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

ING Groep NV decreased its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 28.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 89,009 shares of the company’s stock after selling 36,264 shares during the period. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Kroger were worth $5,100,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in Kroger during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in Kroger by 218.8% in the 2nd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 714 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $43,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $784,715.40. The trade was a 32.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total value of $167,730.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 74,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,142,036.44. This represents a 3.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 12,932 shares of company stock valued at $721,243. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on KR. Melius Research initiated coverage on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Argus increased their price objective on Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. BNP Paribas began coverage on Kroger in a report on Friday, October 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 target price for the company. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Four investment 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.09.

Kroger Stock Down 1.2 %

KR stock opened at $58.04 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a one year low of $42.10 and a one year high of $60.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.87. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $56.28 and its 200 day moving average is $54.10. The firm has a market cap of $41.99 billion, a PE ratio of 15.19, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.48.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 28.54% and a net margin of 1.86%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.96 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.51%.

Kroger 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.