Flputnam Investment Management Co. Buys 7,064 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Flputnam Investment Management Co. grew its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 4.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 173,979 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,064 shares during the quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Kroger were worth $10,639,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 25.5% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 212,250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,170,000 after purchasing an additional 43,143 shares in the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $204,000. Integrated Advisors Network LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $216,000. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. grew its holdings in Kroger by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 66,073 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,786,000 after acquiring an additional 3,084 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Advocates Investment Management increased its position in Kroger by 21.1% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 5,815 shares of the company’s stock valued at $333,000 after acquiring an additional 1,014 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $64.81 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $48.21 and a 12-month high of $66.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The firm has a market cap of $46.90 billion, a PE ratio of 17.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.47. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $62.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $58.57.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.01. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The company had revenue of $33.63 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.19 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.95 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.86%.

Kroger declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KR has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $54.00 to $73.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.19.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In related news, SVP Yael Cosset sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total value of $1,167,800.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 144,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,444,361.80. This trade represents a 12.15 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Timothy A. Massa sold 25,889 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.12, for a total value of $1,556,446.68. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 115,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,965,563.32. This represents a 18.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 195,448 shares of company stock valued at $12,143,923. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.