Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. Decreases Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. cut its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 4.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,976 shares of the company’s stock after selling 755 shares during the quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.’s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,081,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in Kroger during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kroger Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE KR opened at $72.28 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $68.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.53. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $50.69 and a 12-month high of $74.11. The stock has a market cap of $47.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.59.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $45.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.35 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.76% and a return on equity of 30.01%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.43 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.88%.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In related news, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 26,814 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.50, for a total value of $1,890,387.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 99,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,989,581.50. The trade was a 21.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Yael Cosset sold 71,224 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.49, for a total value of $5,234,251.76. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 139,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,224,222.76. This represents a 33.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 243,815 shares of company stock valued at $17,652,983. 0.44% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KR has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $74.00 target price (up previously from $66.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Melius upgraded shares of Kroger from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 21st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kroger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.00.

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.