RWC Asset Management LLP Trims Stock Position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

RWC Asset Management LLP trimmed its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 78.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 10,742 shares of the company’s stock after selling 38,862 shares during the period. RWC Asset Management LLP’s holdings in Kroger were worth $491,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in KR. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the third quarter valued at about $496,000. Czech National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 49.3% in the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 115,411 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,165,000 after buying an additional 38,119 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 0.3% in the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 487,153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,800,000 after buying an additional 1,572 shares during the last quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 3.0% in the third quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC now owns 20,273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $907,000 after buying an additional 589 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 146.1% in the third quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 7,917 shares of the company’s stock valued at $354,000 after buying an additional 4,700 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Price Performance

KR traded down $0.42 on Friday, hitting $55.49. 3,472,039 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,160,883. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.81. The business’s fifty day moving average is $54.24 and its 200 day moving average is $48.24. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $42.10 and a fifty-two week high of $58.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.48.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $37.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $37.07 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.44% and a return on equity of 31.44%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.99 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.43 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on KR shares. BNP Paribas reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $48.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $58.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. One equities research 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.17.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total transaction of $832,800.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 77,696 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,313,681.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,929 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total transaction of $224,070.87. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $214,889.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total transaction of $832,800.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 77,696 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,313,681.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 49,180 shares of company stock worth $2,750,322 over the last ninety days. 1.38% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Kroger Company 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.