Everett Harris & Co. CA Acquires New Position in The Kroger Co. $KR

Everett Harris & Co. CA acquired a new stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 13,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $722,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Kroger by 27.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 15,733 shares of the company’s stock worth $962,000 after purchasing an additional 3,373 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP increased its holdings in Kroger by 40.7% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 56,243 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,807,000 after purchasing an additional 16,270 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Kroger during the 2nd quarter valued at $201,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 11.5% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 97,288 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,978,000 after buying an additional 10,051 shares during the period. Finally, Nebula Research & Development LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 2nd quarter worth $1,840,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on KR shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $82.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research note on Friday, June 19th. Barclays set a $61.00 target price on shares of Kroger and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Kroger from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.00.

Kroger Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $56.69 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $54.15 and a 12-month high of $76.58. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $58.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $64.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.73 billion, a PE ratio of 33.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.43.

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

Kroger Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Saturday, August 15th will be paid a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Kroger’s payout ratio is presently 82.35%.

Key Headlines Impacting Kroger

Here are the key news stories impacting Kroger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kroger appointed former Jet.com and Walmart executive Nate Faust as its first chief e-commerce officer. His mandate includes simplifying the digital business, improving supply-chain efficiency and strengthening online grocery fulfillment—initiatives that could improve growth and margins over time. What Could Kroger Gain From Its New Ecommerce Chief And Texas Fresh Push?
• Positive Sentiment: BrightFarms expanded locally grown greenhouse greens into more than 1,000 Kroger stores in the Dallas area, giving the company additional fresh-produce offerings and a potential way to attract shoppers. Kroger is also planning a new Marketplace store in Northern Kentucky. Kroger Marketplace coming to NKY amid Publix threat
• Neutral Sentiment: Kroger said it will hold its second-quarter 2026 earnings call on September 11. The announcement provides a date for investors to assess sales trends, traffic, e-commerce progress and the company’s outlook, but contains no new financial information. Kroger Announces Second Quarter Conference Call with Investors
• Negative Sentiment: Reports indicate Kroger has closed at least 39 stores across nine banners and plans to shutter 60 locations as part of a nationwide overhaul. Closures may reduce near-term sales and highlight pressure on underperforming stores, even if they eventually lower costs. Major Supermarket Chain Closures
• Negative Sentiment: Kroger’s customer traffic reportedly ranked 13th among 16 retailers in July and has been declining, raising concerns about market-share losses to Walmart, Publix and other competitors. Analysts and industry observers also described the company’s e-commerce operation as overly complex, increasing execution risk for the new digital chief. Kroger’s traffic has been declining
• Negative Sentiment: A recall involving products sold at Kroger and other retailers over a salmonella outbreak adds a potential reputational and operational risk, although the reported information does not quantify any financial impact. Kroger Products Recalled Over Salmonella Outbreak

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.