Acadian Asset Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 1,172.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 20,263 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 18,671 shares during the quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,010,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Kroger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $58.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Argus increased their price target on Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. StockNews.com lowered Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, September 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.09.

Kroger Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of KR opened at $56.19 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $40.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.18, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.47. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $42.10 and a 12 month high of $58.34. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $53.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. Kroger had a net margin of 1.43% and a return on equity of 29.89%. The company had revenue of $33.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.96 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were paid 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. Kroger’s payout ratio is currently 43.69%.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total value of $109,060.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly 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 is accessible through this link. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.