IFP Advisors Inc Cuts Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

IFP Advisors Inc trimmed its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 57.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,619 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,539 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc’s holdings in Kroger were worth $527,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of KR. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kroger by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC now owns 40,665 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,487,000 after acquiring an additional 366 shares during the period. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kroger by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,488 shares of the company’s stock worth $397,000 after acquiring an additional 273 shares during the period. BCGM Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kroger by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. BCGM Wealth Management LLC now owns 37,855 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,315,000 after acquiring an additional 362 shares during the period. WESPAC Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kroger by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. WESPAC Advisors LLC now owns 15,153 shares of the company’s stock worth $927,000 after acquiring an additional 377 shares during the period. Finally, Wealthspire Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kroger by 14.6% in the 4th quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 9,399 shares of the company’s stock worth $575,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on KR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Kroger from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $54.00 to $73.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $67.19.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Yael Cosset sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total value of $1,167,800.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 144,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,444,361.80. This trade represents a 12.15 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total value of $1,040,302.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 53,782 shares in the company, valued at $3,304,366.08. This trade represents a 23.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 195,448 shares of company stock valued at $12,143,923. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Kroger Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of Kroger stock opened at $64.81 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $48.21 and a fifty-two week high of $66.26. The firm has a market cap of $46.90 billion, a PE ratio of 17.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.47. The business’s fifty day moving average is $62.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

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

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.86%.

Kroger declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.