The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Position Decreased by Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. reduced its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 50.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,831 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,185 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Kroger were worth $541,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SouthState Corp lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 334.3% during the 4th quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 595 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 458 shares during the last quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 370.1% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 630 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 496 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 613.0% in the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 820 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 705 shares during the period. First Command Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Kroger in the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Field & Main Bank acquired a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on KR shares. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $58.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.17.

Kroger Stock Down 0.4 %

KR opened at $53.66 on Wednesday. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $42.10 and a twelve month high of $58.34. The firm has a market cap of $38.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.49. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $55.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $49.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.81.

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

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.19%.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other Kroger news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 6,616 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,615,091.02. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Kroger news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 6,616 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.69, for a total value of $368,445.04. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,615,091.02. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $224,070.87. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $214,889.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 55,796 shares of company stock valued at $3,118,767 over the last quarter. 1.38% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.