OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp Boosts Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp lifted its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 10.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 67,194 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,489 shares during the period. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp’s holdings in Kroger were worth $4,109,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Kroger in the 4th quarter worth $598,390,000. Junto Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth about $264,207,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth about $123,829,000. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 39.1% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,054,824 shares of the company’s stock worth $431,402,000 after purchasing an additional 1,981,259 shares during the period. Finally, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Kroger by 1,045.0% in the 4th quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 1,562,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,553,000 after purchasing an additional 1,426,131 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Price Performance

KR stock opened at $67.50 on Wednesday. The Kroger Co. has a one year low of $49.04 and a one year high of $73.63. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $68.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $63.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.54. The company has a market capitalization of $44.61 billion, a PE ratio of 17.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.62.

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

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on KR shares. Melius Research cut shares of Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Melius lowered shares of Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $58.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.06.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total value of $72,030.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 10,473 shares in the company, valued at approximately $754,370.19. This represents a 8.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 28,105 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.62, for a total transaction of $1,872,355.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 52,861 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,521,599.82. The trade was a 34.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 334,923 shares of company stock valued at $22,867,124. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Kroger

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.