CX Institutional Has $2.90 Million Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

CX Institutional lifted its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 47,496 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 833 shares during the quarter. CX Institutional’s holdings in Kroger were worth $2,904,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nexus Investment Management ULC grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Nexus Investment Management ULC now owns 48,115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,942,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. lifted its holdings in Kroger by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 4,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $278,000 after buying an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. Mendel Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Kroger by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Mendel Capital Management LLC now owns 31,559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,808,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Cooper Financial Group increased its stake in shares of Kroger by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 5,366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $328,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. Finally, City Center Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Kroger by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. City Center Advisors LLC now owns 5,748 shares of the company’s stock worth $351,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $61.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Kroger from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $65.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In related news, SVP Yael Cosset sold 20,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total value of $1,167,800.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 144,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,444,361.80. The trade was a 12.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total value of $1,040,302.08. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 53,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,304,366.08. This trade represents a 23.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 195,448 shares of company stock worth $12,143,923. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of KR opened at $58.68 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $60.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $56.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.54. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $44.48 and a twelve month high of $63.59. The firm has a market cap of $42.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.52, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.48.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its 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. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The firm had revenue of $33.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. The company’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.95 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.