Sound Shore Management Inc. CT Sells 163,025 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Sound Shore Management Inc. CT reduced its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 11.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,320,409 shares of the company’s stock after selling 163,025 shares during the quarter. Kroger accounts for 2.7% of Sound Shore Management Inc. CT’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Sound Shore Management Inc. CT’s holdings in Kroger were worth $80,743,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of KR. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new position in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 28,105 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.62, for a total value of $1,872,355.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 52,861 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,521,599.82. This represents a 34.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Gabriel Arreaga sold 15,959 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.63, for a total transaction of $1,047,389.17. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 89,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,846,648.55. This represents a 15.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 212,244 shares of company stock valued at $14,282,348 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $65.38 on Monday. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $49.04 and a 1 year high of $68.51. The firm has a market cap of $47.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.30, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.54. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $63.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $59.95.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The business had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.96 billion. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on KR shares. Citigroup upped their target price on Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Kroger from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Roth Capital set a $58.00 price objective on Kroger in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $54.00 to $73.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.88.

About Kroger

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.