Kesler Norman & Wride LLC Decreases Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Kesler Norman & Wride LLC decreased its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 0.2% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 350,418 shares of the company’s stock after selling 611 shares during the quarter. Kroger comprises approximately 4.2% of Kesler Norman & Wride LLC’s holdings, making the stock its largest position. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $20,019,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Marshall Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC now owns 48,942 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,796,000 after acquiring an additional 2,254 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Guys Formula LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 25.8% during the 1st quarter. Retirement Guys Formula LLC now owns 12,799 shares of the company’s stock valued at $731,000 after acquiring an additional 2,621 shares in the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 26.6% during the 1st quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 7,154 shares of the company’s stock valued at $408,000 after acquiring an additional 1,501 shares in the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Tradewinds Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 1st quarter valued at $114,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the company. StockNews.com raised Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Kroger from $58.00 to $57.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $58.00 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets raised Kroger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $58.00 to $60.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, June 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.30.

Kroger Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:KR traded up $0.32 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $50.75. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,191,500 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,593,407. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.32, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.86. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $52.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $51.06. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $42.10 and a fifty-two week high of $58.34.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, June 20th. The company reported $1.43 EPS 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 business had revenue of $45.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.86 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.51 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a $1.28 dividend. This represents a $5.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.09%. This is a positive change from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is presently 39.59%.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In related news, 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 value of $224,070.87. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $214,889.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Kroger news, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 30,251 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.98, for a total transaction of $1,693,450.98. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 105,298 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,894,582.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $224,070.87. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $214,889.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 55,796 shares of company stock valued at $3,118,767 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

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.