Weiss Asset Management LP Increases Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. $KR

Weiss Asset Management LP increased its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 571.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 148,595 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 126,456 shares during the period. Weiss Asset Management LP’s holdings in Kroger were worth $10,752,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at $470,561,000. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Kroger by 299.6% during the second quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 2,420,495 shares of the company’s stock worth $173,622,000 after acquiring an additional 1,814,721 shares during the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 48.6% in the fourth quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 4,445,479 shares of the company’s stock worth $277,754,000 after acquiring an additional 1,453,966 shares in the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Kroger by 11.3% in the fourth quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 13,398,072 shares of the company’s stock valued at $837,113,000 after purchasing an additional 1,360,946 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. grew its stake in Kroger by 95.6% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 2,434,663 shares of the company’s stock valued at $174,638,000 after purchasing an additional 1,190,127 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $56.81 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.43. The company has a market capitalization of $34.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.44. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $54.15 and a twelve month high of $76.58. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $60.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $65.39.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 18th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.59 by ($0.01). Kroger had a return on equity of 44.33% and a net margin of 0.71%.The firm had revenue of $46.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $45.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.49 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.30 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 5.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Saturday, August 15th will be issued a $0.39 dividend. This is a boost from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.35%.

Kroger News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Kroger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kroger Health launched its new GLP-1 Complete Support Program, with dietitians providing guidance for patients using weight-management medications. This could strengthen Kroger’s health-services offering and create a new customer-engagement opportunity. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: A back-to-school hiring event is seeking to fill hundreds of store jobs across four states, signaling Kroger is still investing in store operations and labor coverage heading into a busy retail period. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Kroger’s ongoing automation and robotics efforts in Columbus-area stores may support efficiency and long-term margin improvement. Article Title

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays set a $61.00 target price on Kroger and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group set a $78.00 price target on shares of Kroger and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 20th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $78.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.00.

Kroger Company Profile

The Kroger Co (NYSE: KR) is one of the largest supermarket operators in the United States, offering a wide range of retail grocery and related services. Founded in Cincinnati in 1883 by Bernard Kroger, the company operates a portfolio of supermarket and multi-department store banners and provides customers with fresh foods, packaged groceries, deli and bakery items, meat and seafood, produce, and prepared foods. Kroger’s stores commonly include pharmacy services and fuel centers, positioning the company as a broad-based neighborhood retail destination for everyday needs.

In addition to traditional in-store retailing, Kroger manufactures and distributes a variety of private-label brands and operates its own food production and supply-chain facilities.