Summit Global Investments Sells 2,187 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Summit Global Investments lessened its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 19.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,290 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,187 shares during the quarter. Summit Global Investments’ holdings in Kroger were worth $425,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sanders Capital LLC boosted its position in Kroger by 2.3% during the third quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 22,662,962 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,014,168,000 after purchasing an additional 498,995 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 7.0% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,833,537 shares of the company’s stock valued at $350,551,000 after buying an additional 511,978 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Kroger by 1.8% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,492,143 shares of the company’s stock worth $201,023,000 after acquiring an additional 78,710 shares in the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its stake in Kroger by 0.3% in the third quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 4,005,412 shares of the company’s stock valued at $179,242,000 after acquiring an additional 10,556 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of Kroger by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,619,742 shares of the company’s stock valued at $117,246,000 after acquiring an additional 50,177 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:KR opened at $54.78 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $39.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $54.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $48.67. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $42.10 and a 1 year high of $58.34.

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

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In other news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 3,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $214,889.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Kroger news, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 30,251 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.98, for a total value of $1,693,450.98. Following the transaction, 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 3,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $214,889.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 55,796 shares of company stock worth $3,118,767. 1.38% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.