The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Purchased by Cerity Partners LLC

Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 12.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 156,275 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,380 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $7,143,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KR. Synovus Financial Corp lifted its position in Kroger by 6.3% during the first quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 12,869 shares of the company’s stock worth $739,000 after buying an additional 764 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its position in Kroger by 30.2% during the first quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 29,150 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,672,000 after buying an additional 6,764 shares in the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its position in Kroger by 7.1% during the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 14,673 shares of the company’s stock worth $842,000 after buying an additional 974 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC purchased a new position in Kroger during the first quarter worth approximately $1,443,000. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. lifted its position in Kroger by 3.6% during the first quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 7,703 shares of the company’s stock worth $442,000 after buying an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Price Performance

KR stock opened at $55.35 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The company has a market capitalization of $39.94 billion, a PE ratio of 18.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.48. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $42.10 and a 12-month high of $58.34. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $52.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $47.56.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $37.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $37.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.99 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.43 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.10%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KR has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Kroger from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th. BNP Paribas restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on Kroger from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Kroger from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $54.08.

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.