River Road Asset Management LLC Acquires 175,080 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

River Road Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,893,043 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 175,080 shares during the period. Kroger comprises 1.4% of River Road Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. River Road Asset Management LLC owned about 0.26% of Kroger worth $108,471,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of KR. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 218.8% in the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 714 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger in the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger in the second quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $56.27 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $55.30 and its 200-day moving average is $53.89. The stock has a market cap of $40.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.48. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $42.10 and a twelve month high of $58.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

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

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.27%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.51%.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $784,715.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $784,715.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total transaction of $167,265.70. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 47,593 shares in the company, valued at $2,644,743.01. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,932 shares of company stock valued at $721,243. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on KR shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Argus lifted their target price on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.09.

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.