Cibc World Markets Corp Grows Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Cibc World Markets Corp grew its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 15.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 262,100 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 34,585 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp’s holdings in Kroger were worth $16,027,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of KR. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Adirondack Trust Co. boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 1,628.1% in the 4th quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 553 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares in the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Kroger in the 4th quarter worth $39,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KR has been the subject of several analyst reports. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Kroger from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $73.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $66.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.71, for a total transaction of $86,723.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 12,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $806,523.90. This trade represents a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Yael Cosset sold 115,149 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.08, for a total value of $7,839,343.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 139,338 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,486,131.04. This trade represents a 45.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 191,040 shares of company stock worth $12,805,838. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $66.40 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $62.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.61. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $49.04 and a fifty-two week high of $68.51. The company has a market capitalization of $48.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.54.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The company had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.96 billion. Analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.88%.

Kroger declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $7.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.