PFG Investments LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

PFG Investments LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 10.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 5,942 shares of the company’s stock after selling 688 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $297,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KR. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Kroger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $229,863,000. Maj Invest Holding A S purchased a new position in Kroger in the 1st quarter worth approximately $185,913,000. Sanders Capital LLC raised its holdings in Kroger by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 23,786,389 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,087,276,000 after acquiring an additional 1,123,427 shares during the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System raised its holdings in Kroger by 337.4% in the 2nd quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 922,487 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,060,000 after acquiring an additional 711,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI raised its holdings in Kroger by 127.2% in the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,194,137 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,333,000 after acquiring an additional 668,440 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $55.91 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a 1-year low of $42.10 and a 1-year high of $58.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The business’s 50 day moving average is $53.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.08, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.47.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $33.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.43% and a return on equity of 29.89%. The business’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.96 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.45 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.29%. This is a boost from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is 43.69%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kroger news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total transaction of $109,060.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 18,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $984,975.39. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KR has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Kroger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $58.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.09.

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.