Horizon Investments LLC Raises Stock Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Horizon Investments LLC lifted its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,579 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the period. Horizon Investments LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,197,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of KR. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Adirondack Trust Co. grew its stake in Kroger by 1,628.1% in the fourth quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 553 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares during the period. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of KR stock opened at $65.46 on Thursday. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $63.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.74. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $49.04 and a 52 week high of $68.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.37 billion, a PE ratio of 17.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.51.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. The business 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, equities research analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.88%.

Kroger declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Kroger from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Roth Mkm increased their target price on Kroger from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.88.

Insider Activity

In other Kroger news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 28,105 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.62, for a total value of $1,872,355.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 52,861 shares in the company, valued at $3,521,599.82. This represents a 34.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Yael Cosset sold 115,149 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.08, for a total value of $7,839,343.92. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 139,338 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,486,131.04. The trade was a 45.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 196,285 shares of company stock valued at $13,234,959 in the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Kroger 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.