Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Invests $17.81 Million in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 290,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,808,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Systematic Alpha Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kroger by 94.1% in the fourth quarter. Systematic Alpha Investments LLC now owns 18,830 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,151,000 after purchasing an additional 9,130 shares during the last quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Kroger by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 18,368 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,123,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors boosted its position in Kroger by 168.4% in the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 26,528 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,622,000 after buying an additional 16,644 shares during the period. OneAscent Financial Services LLC grew its stake in Kroger by 29.7% in the 4th quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC now owns 5,632 shares of the company’s stock worth $344,000 after acquiring an additional 1,289 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cinctive Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,288,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.71, for a total value of $86,723.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 12,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $806,523.90. This represents a 9.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 5,541 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.79, for a total transaction of $392,247.39. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $246,349.20. This trade represents a 61.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 228,785 shares of company stock valued at $15,393,666 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Trading Down 5.2 %

Shares of NYSE:KR opened at $67.05 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $64.99 and its 200 day moving average is $60.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $49.04 and a 1 year high of $71.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.60.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $34.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. On average, research analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 16.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Melius cut Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $58.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Guggenheim raised their price target on Kroger from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.50.

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.