StockNews.com cut shares of Kroger (NYSE:KR – Get Rating) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Saturday.

Several other research analysts have also commented on KR. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Kroger from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 29th. Exane BNP Paribas upgraded Kroger from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a research note on Monday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Kroger from $45.00 to $50.00 in a research note on Monday, December 5th. Guggenheim decreased their price target on Kroger to $50.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 20th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on Kroger from $57.00 to $54.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $54.18.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KR opened at $44.47 on Friday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $45.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.34. The stock has a market cap of $31.83 billion, a PE ratio of 13.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.76. Kroger has a one year low of $41.81 and a one year high of $62.78.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 15th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 14th. Kroger's payout ratio is 32.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 5,779 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.72, for a total transaction of $275,773.88. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,320 shares in the company, valued at approximately $253,870.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Mary Ellen Adcock sold 43,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.27, for a total value of $1,903,610.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 135,611 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,003,498.97. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 5,779 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Friday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.72, for a total transaction of $275,773.88. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 5,320 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $253,870.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.35% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kroger

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of KR. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Kroger by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 81,265,986 shares of the company's stock worth $3,555,388,000 after acquiring an additional 438,869 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. raised its position in shares of Kroger by 5.5% during the third quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 65,735,592 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,875,933,000 after buying an additional 3,443,687 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of Kroger by 1.9% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 16,746,010 shares of the company's stock valued at $792,589,000 after buying an additional 318,500 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Kroger by 9.5% during the second quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,522,183 shares of the company's stock valued at $545,344,000 after buying an additional 1,002,044 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Kroger by 1.2% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 11,483,118 shares of the company's stock valued at $502,469,000 after buying an additional 139,059 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.03% of the company's stock.

Kroger Company Profile

(Get Rating)

The Kroger Co engages in the operation of supermarkets and multi-department stores. Its brands include Big K, Check This Out?, Heritage Farm, Simple Truth, and Simple Truth Organic. The company was founded by Barney Kroger in 1883 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, OH.

Further Reading

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