Flputnam Investment Management Co. Has $10.64 Million Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Flputnam Investment Management Co. lifted its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 173,979 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,064 shares during the quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Kroger were worth $10,639,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Adirondack Trust Co. increased its holdings in Kroger by 1,628.1% during the fourth quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 553 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Performance

NYSE KR opened at $64.81 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $48.21 and a 12-month high of $66.26. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $62.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $58.57. The company has a market capitalization of $46.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $33.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.19 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.95 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.86%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KR has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $61.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group increased their price target on Kroger from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $54.00 to $73.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.19.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total transaction of $8,379,373.86. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 217,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,743,103.14. This represents a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total transaction of $1,040,302.08. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 53,782 shares in the company, valued at $3,304,366.08. This represents a 23.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 195,448 shares of company stock valued at $12,143,923 over the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Kroger

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.