NatWest Group plc trimmed its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR – Get Rating) by 18.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,124 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,000 shares during the quarter. NatWest Group plc's holdings in Kroger were worth $858,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS boosted its position in Kroger by 5.4% during the first quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 89,525 shares of the company's stock worth $5,136,000 after purchasing an additional 4,586 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Kroger by 68.9% during the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 64,961 shares of the company's stock worth $3,727,000 after purchasing an additional 26,493 shares during the period. National Pension Service boosted its position in Kroger by 5.4% during the first quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,176,285 shares of the company's stock worth $67,483,000 after purchasing an additional 60,647 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 7.6% during the first quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 304,038 shares of the company's stock worth $17,443,000 after buying an additional 21,524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commerce Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 1.1% during the first quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 30,531 shares of the company's stock worth $1,751,000 after buying an additional 346 shares in the last quarter. 79.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KR has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group lifted their target price on Kroger to $57.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 13th. Credit Suisse Group dropped their target price on Kroger from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Kroger from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 13th. MKM Partners lifted their target price on Kroger from $48.00 to $55.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Kroger from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Monday, September 12th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $52.89.

Kroger Price Performance

Kroger (NYSE:KR – Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Friday, September 9th. The company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $34.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.44 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 31.72% and a net margin of 1.70%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.80 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.06 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 14th. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.61%.

Kroger Company Profile

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The Kroger Co operates as a 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.

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