Sciencast Management LP Makes New Investment in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Sciencast Management LP purchased a new stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 25,317 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,446,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in KR. Sanders Capital LLC lifted its position in Kroger by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 23,786,389 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,087,276,000 after acquiring an additional 1,123,427 shares during the period. Capital World Investors increased its stake in shares of Kroger by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 14,453,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $660,653,000 after purchasing an additional 214,852 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Kroger by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 12,592,371 shares of the company’s stock valued at $575,546,000 after purchasing an additional 503,839 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $229,863,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Kroger by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,610,352 shares of the company’s stock worth $210,739,000 after buying an additional 118,209 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 15,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total transaction of $832,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 77,696 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,313,681.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Kroger news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total value of $832,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 77,696 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,313,681.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 6,616 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,615,091.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 55,796 shares of company stock worth $3,118,767. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on KR. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $58.00 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Kroger from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 21st. StockNews.com lowered Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Kroger from $58.00 to $57.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Kroger from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock 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 one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.30.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KR traded down $0.26 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $52.49. 3,586,079 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,262,875. 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 Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $42.10 and a 1 year high of $58.34. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $52.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $51.36. The stock has a market cap of $37.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.91, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.45.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 20th. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $45.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.86 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.51 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $1.28 per share. This represents a $5.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.75%. This is an increase from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.59%.

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.