The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Holdings Raised by Sound Shore Management Inc. CT

Sound Shore Management Inc. CT boosted its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 5.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,516,317 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 82,788 shares during the period. Kroger accounts for 2.5% of Sound Shore Management Inc. CT’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Sound Shore Management Inc. CT owned about 0.21% of Kroger worth $75,710,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of KR. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of Kroger by 53.3% during the first quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 9,241 shares of the company’s stock valued at $528,000 after acquiring an additional 3,212 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Kroger by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,380,764 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,115,000 after purchasing an additional 261,368 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 18.8% in the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 820,623 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,882,000 after buying an additional 129,873 shares in the last quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 82.2% in the second quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 132,857 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,634,000 after buying an additional 59,949 shares during the period. Finally, Unigestion Holding SA bought a new position in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at about $671,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total transaction of $167,265.70. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 47,593 shares in the company, valued at $2,644,743.01. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total transaction of $167,265.70. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 47,593 shares in the company, valued at $2,644,743.01. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 18,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $984,975.39. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KR has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Kroger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $58.00 to $60.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Argus raised their target price on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, September 9th. StockNews.com lowered Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.09.

Kroger Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:KR opened at $55.39 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $53.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $53.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $42.10 and a 12-month high of $58.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.47.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. Kroger had a return on equity of 29.89% and a net margin of 1.43%. The firm had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.96 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. This is an increase from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.69%.

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.