Spire Wealth Management Has $2.64 Million Stock Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Spire Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 2,482.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 43,103 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 41,434 shares during the quarter. Spire Wealth Management’s holdings in Kroger were worth $2,636,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Adirondack Trust Co. grew its holdings 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 buying an additional 521 shares during the period. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in Kroger during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the third quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the third quarter worth about $43,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In other news, SVP Timothy A. Massa sold 25,889 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 115,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,965,563.32. This represents a 18.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Yael Cosset sold 20,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total value of $1,167,800.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 144,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,444,361.80. The trade was a 12.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 195,448 shares of company stock worth $12,143,923 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Up 1.0 %

Kroger stock opened at $61.65 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The company’s 50-day moving average is $60.43 and its 200-day moving average is $57.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.61 billion, a PE ratio of 16.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.48. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $44.48 and a fifty-two week high of $63.59.

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

Kroger declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, March 1st will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.08%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.86%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on KR shares. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, October 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Kroger from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Kroger from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.80.

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.