The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Shares Sold by Eagle Strategies LLC

Eagle Strategies LLC reduced its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 1.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,070 shares of the company’s stock after selling 151 shares during the period. Eagle Strategies LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $614,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its stake in Kroger by 11.7% during the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 10,642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $720,000 after acquiring an additional 1,115 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Kroger by 172.2% during the 1st quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 1,587 shares of the company’s stock worth $107,000 after buying an additional 1,004 shares in the last quarter. Park Capital Management LLC WI lifted its holdings in Kroger by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Park Capital Management LLC WI now owns 16,821 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,139,000 after buying an additional 428 shares in the last quarter. Jmac Enterprises LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger during the 1st quarter worth approximately $311,000. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 14.7% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 145,547 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,852,000 after purchasing an additional 18,668 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kroger Stock Up 9.7%

Kroger stock opened at $71.85 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $68.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $65.27. The stock has a market cap of $47.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.58, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $49.04 and a 52 week high of $73.63.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $45.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.35 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.76% and a return on equity of 30.01%. The business’s revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.43 EPS. On average, analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Melius Research upgraded shares of Kroger from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of Kroger from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $73.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday. Finally, Roth Capital set a $58.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.11.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In related news, EVP Christine S. Wheatley sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $2,162,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 97,737 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,043,905.59. This trade represents a 23.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total transaction of $72,030.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 10,473 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $754,370.19. This represents a 8.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 111,679 shares of company stock valued at $7,865,706 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

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.