Van ECK Associates Corp Has $8.05 Million Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 8.3% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 161,116 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 12,296 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Kroger were worth $8,045,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Hengehold Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Kroger by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC now owns 13,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $778,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the period. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in Kroger by 1.1% in the second quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC now owns 16,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $826,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC lifted its stake in Kroger by 2.8% in the first quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 6,922 shares of the company’s stock valued at $395,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. W Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. W Advisors LLC now owns 32,876 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,878,000 after buying an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Csenge Advisory Group grew its position in shares of Kroger by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 4,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $263,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other Kroger news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total value of $109,060.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $984,975.39. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KR has been the topic of a number of research reports. Argus boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Wolfe Research raised Kroger to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Kroger from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, June 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $58.64.

Kroger Trading Up 1.4 %

NYSE KR opened at $53.21 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $52.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $53.35. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $42.10 and a 12 month high of $58.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.16, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.45.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, June 20th. The company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.10. Kroger had a net margin of 1.43% and a return on equity of 29.89%. The company had revenue of $45.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $44.86 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.51 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.41%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.69%.

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.