Savant Capital LLC Acquires 1,053 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Savant Capital LLC grew its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 4.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 26,289 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,053 shares during the quarter. Savant Capital LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,608,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nexus Investment Management ULC grew its position in Kroger by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Nexus Investment Management ULC now owns 48,115 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,942,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 4,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $278,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Mendel Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 0.6% in the third quarter. Mendel Capital Management LLC now owns 31,559 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,808,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Cooper Financial Group lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 5,366 shares of the company’s stock worth $328,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, City Center Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. City Center Advisors LLC now owns 5,748 shares of the company’s stock worth $351,000 after buying an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kroger Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of KR stock opened at $65.66 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a 52-week low of $45.17 and a 52-week high of $66.18. The stock has a market cap of $47.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.47. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average of $61.15 and a 200-day moving average of $57.70.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.01. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. The company had revenue of $33.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.95 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.86%.

Kroger announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Roth Mkm boosted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Kroger from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $54.00 to $73.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $67.19.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Timothy A. Massa sold 25,889 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.12, for a total transaction of $1,556,446.68. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 115,861 shares in the company, valued at $6,965,563.32. This trade represents a 18.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Yael Cosset sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total transaction of $1,167,800.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 144,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,444,361.80. This trade represents a 12.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 195,448 shares of company stock worth $12,143,923 in the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Kroger 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.