Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Makes New Investment in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 81,724 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,997,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. GSA Capital Partners LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 17.8% in the third quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 8,727 shares of the company’s stock worth $500,000 after buying an additional 1,320 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 6.1% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 390,443 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,373,000 after buying an additional 22,547 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 0.3% in the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 2,035,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $116,617,000 after buying an additional 5,200 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 4.2% in the third quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 10,054 shares of the company’s stock worth $576,000 after buying an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OneAscent Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the third quarter worth $258,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kroger Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of KR opened at $65.94 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $62.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $59.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The company has a market cap of $47.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.51. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $49.04 and a twelve month high of $68.51.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $34.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.96 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. As a group, analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is presently 34.88%.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In other Kroger news, SVP Yael Cosset sold 17,685 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.19, for a total transaction of $1,170,570.15. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 139,124 shares in the company, valued at $9,208,617.56. This represents a 11.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 4,492 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.53, for a total transaction of $298,852.76. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $231,524.40. The trade was a 56.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 213,217 shares of company stock worth $14,275,261. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on KR. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $73.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Roth Mkm upped their price target on shares of Kroger from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.88.

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.