Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Has $4.82 Million Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans reduced its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 84,155 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,948 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Kroger were worth $4,822,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in Kroger during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Kroger in the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in Kroger by 218.8% during the 2nd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 714 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Trading Up 1.1 %

NYSE:KR opened at $59.22 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $42.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.48. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $42.97 and a twelve month high of $60.35. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $56.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $54.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

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

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on KR. Melius Research assumed coverage on Kroger in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. BNP Paribas began coverage on Kroger in a research report on Friday, October 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 target price for the company. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.09.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In related news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $784,715.40. This trade represents a 32.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Carin L. Fike sold 3,010 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.57, for a total transaction of $167,265.70. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 47,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,644,743.01. This represents a 5.95 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,932 shares of company stock worth $721,243 over the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.