The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Purchased by Synovus Financial Corp

Synovus Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,797 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 390 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp’s holdings in Kroger were worth $619,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KR. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Kroger by 11,570.7% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,729,788 shares of the company’s stock valued at $156,417,000 after purchasing an additional 2,706,398 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in shares of Kroger by 96.6% during the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,381,311 shares of the company’s stock worth $268,689,000 after acquiring an additional 2,643,811 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Kroger by 6.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 33,057,629 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,894,202,000 after acquiring an additional 2,110,681 shares during the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec grew its position in shares of Kroger by 110.5% during the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 3,574,651 shares of the company’s stock worth $204,828,000 after acquiring an additional 1,876,397 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in shares of Kroger by 698.8% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,878,479 shares of the company’s stock worth $93,792,000 after acquiring an additional 1,643,307 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $784,715.40. This represents a 32.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total value of $8,379,373.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 217,523 shares in the company, valued at $13,743,103.14. This represents a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 188,438 shares of company stock worth $11,657,598. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Price Performance

KR stock opened at $61.18 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The Kroger Co. has a one year low of $44.07 and a one year high of $63.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.26 billion, a PE ratio of 16.19, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $58.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $55.05.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.01. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. The company had revenue of $33.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.95 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.86%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on KR. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Kroger from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, October 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com lowered shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $54.00 to $73.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Melius Research began coverage on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $55.00 target price for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $64.31.

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.