Tobam ​​reduces holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Tobam ​​reduced its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR – Free Report) by 34.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 153,642 shares of the company’s stock after selling 79,235 shares during the period. Kroger comprises about 1.6% of Tobam’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Tobam’s holdings in Kroger were worth $8,804,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their positions in the company. Hengehold Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 1.4% in the first quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC now owns 13,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $778,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC raised its position in Kroger by 1.1% in the second quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC now owns 16,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $826,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC increased its position in Kroger by 2.8% in the first quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 6,922 shares of the company’s stock valued at $395,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. Csenge Advisory Group increased its position in Kroger by 4.3% in the first quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 4,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $263,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the period. Finally, Global Financial Private Client LLC grew its position in Kroger by 1.2% in the first quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 17,112 shares of the company’s stock valued at $975,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the period. 80.93% of the shares are currently held by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts on Wall Street are forecasting an increase

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on KR shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Kroger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $58.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Tuesday , June 18. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Wolfe Research upgraded Kroger to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, Argus boosted their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Kroger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.36, according to MarketBeat .

Get the latest research report on Kroger

Kroger trading down 1.6%

NYSE:KR traded down $0.89 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $55.26. The stock had a trading volume of 972,384 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,878,877. Kroger Co. it has a one year low of $42.10 and a one year high of $58.34. The company has a market cap of $39.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.17, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.47. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $54.20 and a 200-day moving average of $53.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.87, and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Kroger (NYSE:KR – Get Your Free Report ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. Kroger had a return on equity of 28.54% and a net margin of 1.86%. The company had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.09 billion. In the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.96 per share. Kroger’s revenue was up 0.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 EPS for the current year.

Kroger announces dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15. This represents an annualized dividend of $1.28 and a yield of 2.32%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.69%.

Buy and sell inside at Kroger

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total transaction of $109,060.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 18,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $984,975.39. This represents a 0.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible via this hyperlink. In related news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total value of $167,265.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 47,593 shares in the company, valued at $2,644,743.01. This trade represents a 0.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total value of $109,060.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,063 shares in the company, valued at $984,975.39. This represents a decrease of 0.00 % in the ownership of the shares. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 14,932 shares of company stock worth $830,303. 1.40% of shares are currently held by corporate insiders.

Kroger profile

(Free report)

The Kroger Co operates as a food and drug distributor in the United States. The company operates combinations of grocery and drug stores, multi-department stores, market stores and price impact warehouses. Its combined grocery and drug stores offer natural and organic food sections, pharmacies, general merchandise, pet centers, fresh seafood and organic products; and multi-department stores offer apparel, fashion and home furnishings, outdoor living, electronics, automotive and toys.

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