Sapient Capital LLC Buys New Shares in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 14,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $647,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its holdings in Kroger by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 8,839 shares of the company’s stock valued at $396,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the period. Belpointe Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 12,405 shares of the company’s stock worth $555,000 after buying an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Mendel Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Mendel Capital Management LLC now owns 33,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,514,000 after buying an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Balentine LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 2.5% in the third quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 10,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $479,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New York Life Investment Management LLC increased its position in Kroger by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 103,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,626,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In related news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Kroger news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 15,000 shares of the company’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 owns 77,696 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,313,681.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total transaction of $224,070.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,768 shares in the company, valued at $214,889.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 55,796 shares of company stock valued at $3,118,767 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.38% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of KR opened at $54.89 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $39.61 billion, a PE ratio of 18.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.49. The Kroger Co. has a 52-week low of $42.10 and a 52-week high of $58.34. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $54.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $48.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $37.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.99 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.43 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KR has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. 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. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $58.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.17.

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.