Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 4.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 133,735 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,939 shares during the quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC's holdings in Kroger were worth $8,163,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of KR. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in Kroger in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Adirondack Trust Co. boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 1,628.1% in the fourth quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 553 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Kroger in the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

NYSE:KR opened at $65.41 on Thursday. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average of $61.60 and a 200-day moving average of $58.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.33 billion, a PE ratio of 17.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.47. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $46.96 and a 52 week high of $66.18.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $33.63 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.19 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The firm's revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.95 EPS. Analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.96%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is presently 33.86%.

Kroger announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

KR has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Kroger from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on Kroger from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com cut Kroger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Kroger from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kroger currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $67.19.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on KR

In other news, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total value of $8,379,373.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 217,523 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,743,103.14. This represents a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total transaction of $1,040,302.08. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 53,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,304,366.08. This represents a 23.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 195,448 shares of company stock valued at $12,143,923 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

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.

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