Meritage Portfolio Management Sells 2,164 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Meritage Portfolio Management cut its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 130,057 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,164 shares during the period. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in Kroger were worth $5,945,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KR. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 370.1% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 630 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. lifted its holdings in Kroger by 430.8% in the third quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 637 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 517 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Kroger by 613.0% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 820 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 705 shares during the period. Finally, First Command Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in Kroger in the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kroger Stock Performance

KR stock traded down $0.39 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $55.52. The stock had a trading volume of 1,855,810 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,887,754. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.07 billion, a PE ratio of 18.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $54.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $48.16. 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 posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $37.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $37.07 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.44% and a return on equity of 31.44%. Kroger’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.99 EPS. Analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $224,070.87. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $214,889.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $224,070.87. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $214,889.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 30,251 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.98, for a total transaction of $1,693,450.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 105,298 shares in the company, valued at $5,894,582.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 49,180 shares of company stock worth $2,750,322 in the last quarter. 1.38% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on KR shares. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Tuesday. Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. BNP Paribas reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $58.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Kroger presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.17.

About Kroger

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.