New York Life Investment Management LLC Raises Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

New York Life Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 104,336 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 968 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $4,769,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Kroger by 4,810.7% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 567,829 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,955,000 after acquiring an additional 556,266 shares in the last quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. raised its position in shares of Kroger by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 284,094 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,715,000 after acquiring an additional 11,707 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 156,275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,143,000 after purchasing an additional 17,380 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in Kroger by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,647,862 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,175,000 after purchasing an additional 115,264 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Impax Asset Management Group plc grew its holdings in Kroger by 58.9% in the fourth quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 102,194 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,671,000 after purchasing an additional 37,892 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kroger Price Performance

Kroger stock opened at $54.78 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.53 billion, a PE ratio of 18.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.49. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $42.10 and a 12-month high of $58.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $54.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $48.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.21. Kroger had a return on equity of 31.44% and a net margin of 1.44%. The business had revenue of $37.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $37.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.99 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.43 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. BNP Paribas reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $48.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $58.00 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $55.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 6,616 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.69, for a total value of $368,445.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,958 shares in the company, valued at $2,615,091.02. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total transaction of $832,800.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 77,696 shares in the company, valued at $4,313,681.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 6,616 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.69, for a total value of $368,445.04. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,615,091.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 55,796 shares of company stock valued at $3,118,767 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.38% of the company’s stock.

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.