Wellington Management Group LLP Has $1.95 Million Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Wellington Management Group LLP cut its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 13.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 43,563 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,943 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP’s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,949,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. KB Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its position in Kroger by 430.8% during the third quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 637 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 517 shares during the period. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC bought a new stake in Kroger in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Trading Up 0.9 %

KR opened at $56.90 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $40.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.22, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The company’s 50 day moving average is $49.53 and its 200-day moving average is $46.48. The Kroger Co. has a 1-year low of $42.10 and a 1-year high of $57.26.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its earnings results 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 net margin of 1.44% and a return on equity of 31.44%. The firm had revenue of $37.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $37.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.99 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.04%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stephens lowered their target price on shares of Kroger from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 1st. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. TheStreet raised Kroger from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a report on Thursday, November 30th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Kroger from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Kroger from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $50.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $54.45.

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.