UMB Bank n.a. Sells 241 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

UMB Bank n.a. decreased its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 5,621 shares of the company’s stock after selling 241 shares during the quarter. UMB Bank n.a.’s holdings in Kroger were worth $322,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in KR. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Kroger by 255.6% in the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 448 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 101.6% during the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 496 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in Kroger during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $784,715.40. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The stock was 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 $784,715.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.53, for a total transaction of $109,060.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,063 shares in the company, valued at $984,975.39. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 14,932 shares of company stock worth $830,303. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on KR shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Argus upped their price objective on Kroger from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Wednesday. Wolfe Research raised Kroger to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, Melius Research initiated coverage on Kroger in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $55.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.36.

Kroger Stock Performance

Kroger stock opened at $55.36 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $54.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $53.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.05 billion, a PE ratio of 14.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The Kroger Co. has a 1-year low of $42.10 and a 1-year high of $58.34.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $33.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.09 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 28.54% and a net margin of 1.86%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.96 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.51%.

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.