The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Stock Holdings Lifted by Quantinno Capital Management LP

Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 48.2% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 168,482 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 54,789 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP’s holdings in Kroger were worth $9,654,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 1.1% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,890,887 shares of the company’s stock valued at $280,248,000 after buying an additional 53,006 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its stake in Kroger by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 2,176,218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $124,697,000 after purchasing an additional 36,083 shares during the period. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger during the 2nd quarter valued at $10,336,000. Buck Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger during the 2nd quarter valued at $6,524,000. Finally, OLD National Bancorp IN raised its stake in Kroger by 82.2% during the 2nd quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 132,857 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,634,000 after purchasing an additional 59,949 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:KR opened at $60.75 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.95 billion, a PE ratio of 15.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.48. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $43.51 and a 1 year high of $61.37. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $57.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $54.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $33.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.86% and a return on equity of 28.54%. Kroger’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.95 earnings per share. Analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $784,715.40. This trade represents a 32.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total transaction of $167,730.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 74,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,142,036.44. The trade was a 3.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 12,932 shares of company stock worth $721,243. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets downgraded shares of Kroger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $60.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Kroger from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Finally, BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Kroger in a research note on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price target on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $62.64.

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.