Contravisory Investment Management Inc. Acquires Shares of 8,236 The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 8,236 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $504,000.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in Kroger during the second quarter valued at $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Kroger by 218.8% during the 2nd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 714 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger in the third quarter valued at about $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $54.00 to $73.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Kroger in a report on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Guggenheim began coverage on Kroger in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price objective for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $65.93.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Yael Cosset sold 20,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total value of $1,167,800.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 144,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,444,361.80. The trade was a 12.15 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total transaction of $8,379,373.86. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 217,523 shares in the company, valued at $13,743,103.14. The trade was a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 195,448 shares of company stock worth $12,143,923. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE:KR opened at $58.74 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $42.50 billion, a PE ratio of 15.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.48. The company’s 50 day moving average is $60.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $56.44. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $44.48 and a 52 week high of $63.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $33.63 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.19 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. Kroger’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.95 EPS. Equities analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.