The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Position Reduced by Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC

Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC cut its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 6.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,784 shares of the company’s stock after selling 406 shares during the quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $289,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sanders Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 23,786,389 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,087,276,000 after purchasing an additional 1,123,427 shares during the period. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 14,453,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $660,653,000 after purchasing an additional 214,852 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Kroger by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 12,592,371 shares of the company’s stock worth $575,546,000 after buying an additional 503,839 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth approximately $229,863,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Kroger by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,610,352 shares of the company’s stock worth $210,739,000 after purchasing an additional 118,209 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total transaction of $109,060.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $984,975.39. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Argus raised their price objective on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Kroger from $58.00 to $57.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 24th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Kroger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $58.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Kroger to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $58.64.

Kroger Stock Performance

KR traded down $0.48 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $52.23. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,755,671 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,008,800. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.86. The company’s 50-day moving average is $52.57 and its 200-day moving average is $52.90. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $42.10 and a 52 week high of $58.34. The firm has a market cap of $37.70 billion, a PE ratio of 17.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.45.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 20th. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.10. Kroger had a return on equity of 29.89% and a net margin of 1.43%. The firm had revenue of $45.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $44.86 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.51 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.45 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is an increase from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. Kroger’s payout ratio is presently 43.69%.

Kroger Company 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.