The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Stake Boosted by Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund boosted its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 0.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 57,030 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in Kroger were worth $3,487,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 25.5% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 212,250 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,170,000 after buying an additional 43,143 shares during the period. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the third quarter worth about $204,000. abrdn plc grew its position in Kroger by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. abrdn plc now owns 859,316 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,037,000 after purchasing an additional 9,072 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC purchased a new position in Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $216,000. Finally, Pinnacle Associates Ltd. grew its position 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 purchasing an additional 3,084 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on KR shares. StockNews.com lowered Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $61.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $54.00 to $73.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kroger has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.19.

Kroger Stock Up 0.2 %

KR opened at $63.91 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $62.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.49. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $48.21 and a twelve month high of $66.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.54. The firm has a market cap of $46.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.47.

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

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.86%.

Kroger announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Yael Cosset sold 20,000 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 144,620 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,444,361.80. This trade represents a 12.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Timothy A. Massa sold 25,889 shares of Kroger 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 in the company, valued at $6,965,563.32. The trade was a 18.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 195,448 shares of company stock valued at $12,143,923 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

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.