Mendel Capital Management LLC Has $1.81 Million Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Mendel Capital Management LLC boosted its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 0.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 31,559 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 181 shares during the quarter. Kroger makes up about 1.1% of Mendel Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Mendel Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,808,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in shares of Kroger during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 218.8% during the 2nd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 714 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC bought a new stake in Kroger in the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total transaction of $386,247.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $784,715.40. This trade represents a 32.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total transaction of $167,265.70. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 47,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,644,743.01. This represents a 5.95 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,932 shares of company stock valued at $721,243. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on KR shares. Melius Research started coverage on Kroger in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. BNP Paribas started coverage on Kroger in a research note on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Kroger has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.09.

Kroger Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of Kroger stock opened at $58.02 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.98 billion, a PE ratio of 15.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $56.39 and its 200 day moving average is $54.11. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $42.10 and a 1 year high of $60.35.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $33.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 28.54% and a net margin of 1.86%. Kroger’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.96 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is currently 33.51%.

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.