The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Position Reduced by West Coast Financial LLC

West Coast Financial LLC lowered its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 2.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 145,478 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,441 shares during the period. Kroger makes up about 1.1% of West Coast Financial LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. West Coast Financial LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $9,847,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of KR. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at $598,390,000. Steadfast Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at $277,989,000. Junto Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at $264,207,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at $123,829,000. Finally, FMR LLC grew its position in Kroger by 39.1% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,054,824 shares of the company’s stock worth $431,402,000 after purchasing an additional 1,981,259 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 28,105 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.62, for a total value of $1,872,355.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 52,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,521,599.82. This represents a 34.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Christine S. Wheatley sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $2,162,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 97,737 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,043,905.59. This trade represents a 23.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 334,923 shares of company stock valued at $22,867,124. Insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Down 1.3%

Kroger stock opened at $66.24 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $43.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $49.04 and a fifty-two week high of $73.63. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $69.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $64.66.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. As a group, analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on KR shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $65.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Melius upgraded shares of Kroger from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $70.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $73.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.06.

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.