Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Buys 39,316 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 16,801.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 39,550 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 39,316 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in Kroger were worth $2,419,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in KR. Vinva Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 34,593 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,118,000 after purchasing an additional 3,684 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 120,447 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,365,000 after purchasing an additional 6,477 shares during the period. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,997,000. Horizon Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 19,579 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,197,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the period. Finally, PDS Planning Inc lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 19.2% in the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 7,282 shares of the company’s stock worth $445,000 after purchasing an additional 1,174 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kroger Stock Down 0.8 %

NYSE:KR opened at $65.46 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.32, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.51. The Kroger Co. has a 1-year low of $49.04 and a 1-year high of $68.51. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $63.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $59.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $34.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.96%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.88%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Kroger from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $73.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Seven research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $66.88.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 4,492 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.53, for a total transaction of $298,852.76. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $231,524.40. This trade represents a 56.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Yael Cosset sold 115,149 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.08, for a total transaction of $7,839,343.92. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 139,338 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,486,131.04. The trade was a 45.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 196,285 shares of company stock worth $13,234,959. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.