CIBC Asset Management Inc Grows Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 117,091 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,797 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc’s holdings in Kroger were worth $6,709,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in KR. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its holdings in Kroger by 1.7% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 2,176,218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $124,697,000 after buying an additional 36,083 shares during the last quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the second quarter valued at approximately $10,336,000. Buck Wealth Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the second quarter valued at approximately $6,524,000. OLD National Bancorp IN increased its holdings in Kroger by 82.2% during the second quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 132,857 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,634,000 after buying an additional 59,949 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wright Investors Service Inc. increased its holdings in Kroger by 63.0% during the third quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. now owns 38,934 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,231,000 after buying an additional 15,048 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KR has been the subject of a number of research reports. Argus upped their target price on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Melius Research began coverage on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $55.00 price objective for the company. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Kroger in a research note on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.09.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $784,715.40. This trade represents a 32.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total transaction of $167,265.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 47,593 shares in the company, valued at $2,644,743.01. This represents a 5.95 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 12,932 shares of company stock worth $721,243. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Kroger Price Performance

KR stock opened at $58.02 on Monday. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $42.10 and a 52 week high of $60.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $56.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $54.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.48.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. Kroger had a net margin of 1.86% and a return on equity of 28.54%. The business had revenue of $33.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.96 earnings per share. Kroger’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.51%.

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.