Kroger Co (NYSE:KR) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 35,020,000 shares, an increase of 11.7% from the September 30th total of 31,360,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 8,560,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.1 days. Currently, 4.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold.
In related news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.19, for a total value of $104,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 33,796 shares in the company, valued at $885,117.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 4,652 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.00, for a total value of $120,952.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 33,796 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $878,696. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 134,323 shares of company stock valued at $3,537,389. 1.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KR. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 30.2% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 10,689,834 shares of the company’s stock valued at $232,077,000 after acquiring an additional 2,477,585 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Kroger by 170.2% in the second quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 3,450,595 shares of the company’s stock valued at $74,912,000 after purchasing an additional 2,173,370 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger in the second quarter valued at $35,064,000. Coho Partners Ltd. increased its holdings in Kroger by 31.1% in the second quarter. Coho Partners Ltd. now owns 6,451,743 shares of the company’s stock valued at $140,067,000 after purchasing an additional 1,530,258 shares during the period. Finally, Becker Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Kroger by 96.1% in the second quarter. Becker Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,955,977 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,174,000 after purchasing an additional 1,448,824 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.59% of the company’s stock.
Shares of KR traded down $0.16 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $26.75. The stock had a trading volume of 4,700,171 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,257,613. Kroger has a 12 month low of $20.70 and a 12 month high of $30.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.57 billion, a PE ratio of 12.68, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.76. The company’s 50-day moving average is $25.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.94.
Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.03. Kroger had a return on equity of 21.17% and a net margin of 1.36%. The company had revenue of $28.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.41 EPS. Kroger’s revenue was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Kroger will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.39%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. Kroger’s payout ratio is 30.33%.
About Kroger
The Kroger Co operates as a retailer in the United States. The company operates supermarkets, multi-department stores, marketplace stores, and price impact warehouse stores. 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.
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