Capital Investment Counsel Inc Cuts Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Capital Investment Counsel Inc trimmed its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 3.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,183 shares of the company’s stock after selling 600 shares during the quarter. Capital Investment Counsel Inc’s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,051,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of KR. Adirondack Trust Co. boosted its holdings in Kroger by 1,628.1% during the 4th quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 553 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Kroger during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Kroger during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth $43,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of Kroger stock opened at $64.41 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a 52-week low of $46.96 and a 52-week high of $66.18. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $61.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $58.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.54.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share 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 analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.95 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.86%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price target on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Kroger from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.19.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total transaction of $1,040,302.08. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 53,782 shares in the company, valued at $3,304,366.08. This represents a 23.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total value of $8,379,373.86. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 217,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Insiders have sold a total of 195,448 shares of company stock worth $12,143,923 over the last ninety days. 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.