Hager Investment Management Services LLC Purchases Shares of 10,970 The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 10,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $671,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KR. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Adirondack Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of Kroger by 1,628.1% in the fourth quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 553 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares in the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the third quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the third quarter worth about $43,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of Kroger stock opened at $64.03 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $60.49 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $57.19. The company has a market cap of $46.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.94, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.47. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $44.48 and a 12-month high of $64.90.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.01. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. The firm had revenue of $33.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.95 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.86%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

KR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of 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 raised their price objective on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Guggenheim started coverage on shares of Kroger in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price objective for the company. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.06.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In related news, SVP Timothy A. Massa sold 25,889 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.12, for a total value of $1,556,446.68. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 115,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,965,563.32. This represents a 18.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total transaction of $8,379,373.86. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 217,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,743,103.14. This represents a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 195,448 shares of company stock worth $12,143,923. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

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.