The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Bought by SteelPeak Wealth LLC

SteelPeak Wealth LLC raised its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 662.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 43,137 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 37,476 shares during the period. SteelPeak Wealth LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $2,154,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Hengehold Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Kroger by 17.5% during the 2nd quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC now owns 16,015 shares of the company’s stock worth $800,000 after purchasing an additional 2,389 shares during the last quarter. PGGM Investments acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the second quarter valued at approximately $396,000. Bremer Bank National Association acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the second quarter valued at approximately $3,309,000. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the second quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Maj Invest Holding A S boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 35.1% in the second quarter. Maj Invest Holding A S now owns 4,395,212 shares of the company’s stock worth $219,456,000 after acquiring an additional 1,141,029 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Trading Up 1.0 %

KR stock traded up $0.51 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $52.89. 4,105,830 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,025,800. The Kroger Co. has a 1-year low of $42.10 and a 1-year high of $58.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.18 billion, a PE ratio of 17.98, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.45. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $52.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $52.68.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 20th. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.10. Kroger had a return on equity of 29.89% and a net margin of 1.43%. The firm had revenue of $45.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $44.86 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.51 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This is a positive change from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.69%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Kroger from $58.00 to $57.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Argus boosted their price target on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Kroger to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 21st. StockNews.com upgraded Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on Kroger from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $58.64.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total value of $109,060.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $984,975.39. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.