Westpac Banking Corp, one of Australia’s most prominent banks, has recently purchased an additional 22,551 shares in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR), raising their stake by a healthy 11.2%. This news was confirmed by the bank in its latest Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Westpac Banking Corp now owns 223,292 shares in total, equating to $9,954,000 on date of filing.
Kroger, a retail powerhouse with stores throughout the United States, recently declared a quarterly dividend due to be paid on June 1st. Shareholders of record on May 15th will receive $0.26 per share, which represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis with a yield of 2.15%. However, as it is common practice amongst banks buying stocks just days before a dividend is paid out, it remains unclear if Westpac Banking Corp made this purchase purely for investment or if they were motivated by the upcoming payout.
Despite this somewhat ambiguous move by Westpac Banking Corp there seems to be widespread optimism among experts regarding Kroger’s future prospects. While some analysts have issued ‘hold’ ratings, several others have given ‘buy’ ratings and even more give it a moderate buy rating as per Bloomberg.com data. JPMorgan Chase & Co., for example has rated the stock ‘Overweight,’ while Roth Capital reaffirmed its “neutral” stance towards Kroger.
With all these views converging upon the notion that Kroger has sound potential for growth in both market value and profitability over time based on their current financials —including revenue figures projected at approximately $121 billion—it’s clear that investor confidence in Kroger is building momentum.
And while holding onto Kroger shares might always entail elements of uncertainty because unforeseen market events can impact business performance; those looking for stable returns may find that holding KR stocks is worth the risk right now.
Institutional Investors Modify Holdings and Executive Changes at Kroger Co.
Kroger Co., a leading American supermarket chain, has experienced new developments in the company’s holdings and executive changes. Institutional investors including BlackRock Inc., Pacer Advisors Inc., Alliancebernstein L.P., Los Angeles Capital Management LLC, and Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership have recently modified their holdings of Kroger stock. BlackRock Inc. now owns 65,735,592 shares of Kroger valued at $2,875,933,000 after acquiring an additional 3,443,687 shares during the last quarter. This brings the total percentage of institutional investor ownership to 78.03% of the company’s stocks.
Additionally, two senior vice presidents at Kroger made transactions regarding the firm’s stock in April. SVP Timothy A. Massa sold 23,000 shares at an average price of $47.95 for a total transaction of $1,102,850.00 while VP Christine S. Wheatley sold 25,000 shares at an average price of $47.49 for a total transaction of $1,187,250.00 that same week.
Despite these changes in management and holdings, Kroger still declared a quarterly dividend with shareholders set to receive $0.26 per share on Thursday June 1st.The ex-dividend date is Friday May 12th making the annualized yield approximately 2.15%.
The market capitalization for Kroger is currently $34.68 billion with an opening stock price on Friday of $48.34 per share.Kroger had a net margin of 1.51% and a return on equity of 31.84%, along with generating revenue of $34.82 billion during its latest quarter report in March.
Overall,Kroger’s investor profile continues to change as it experiences growth within the American supermarket industry despite digital competition from Amazon and Walmart in recent years.It remains to be seen how these moves will play out for the iconic grocer.
Read More: Westpac Banking Corp Increases Stake in Kroger, Indicating Positive Future