Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Invests $95,000 in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,663 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $95,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of KR. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in Kroger during the second quarter valued at $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 218.8% during the 2nd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 714 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Kroger during the third quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Kroger in the third quarter worth approximately $43,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on KR. Guggenheim began coverage on shares of Kroger in a research report on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Kroger from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Kroger from $59.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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. Finally, BNP Paribas started coverage on Kroger in a research report on Friday, October 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 target price on the stock. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kroger currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.43.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kroger news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 53,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,304,366.08. This represents a 23.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $784,715.40. The trade was a 32.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 205,370 shares of company stock valued at $12,697,900. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Up 1.5 %

KR opened at $61.85 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $44.48 and a fifty-two week high of $63.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.36, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.48. The company’s 50-day moving average is $58.84 and its 200 day moving average is $55.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

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

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

Kroger Company 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.