The Kroger Co. $KR Stock: Hosking Partners LLP Decreases Stake

Hosking Partners LLP decreased its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 6.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 218,332 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,188 shares during the quarter. Hosking Partners LLP’s holdings in Kroger were worth $12,799,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of KR. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Kroger in the 2nd quarter worth $3,016,956,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Kroger by 0.4% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 12,296,026 shares of the company’s stock valued at $889,878,000 after acquiring an additional 53,625 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in Kroger by 17.0% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,041,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $437,129,000 after acquiring an additional 876,168 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in Kroger in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $284,501,000. Finally, Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 18.3% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 3,942,230 shares of the company’s stock worth $218,912,000 after buying an additional 610,039 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In related news, EVP Mary Adcock sold 72,901 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.70, for a total transaction of $4,425,090.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 175,233 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,636,643.10. This represents a 29.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Kroger

Here are the key news stories impacting Kroger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kroger plans to invest approximately $5 billion by 2029 to lower prices, strengthen its value proposition and win market share. Management is targeting roughly 3% annual comparable sales growth, 3%-6% adjusted EBITDA growth and 7%-11% adjusted EPS growth through 2029. Kroger long-term financial targets
• Positive Sentiment: The company intends to open about 110 new stores and refresh existing locations, with updated formats allocating more space to fresh food and e-commerce. The expansion could support revenue growth and improve Kroger’s competitiveness against Walmart, Amazon and other grocers. Kroger store formats and expansion
• Positive Sentiment: Management is simplifying operations and focusing more closely on its core grocery business under CEO Greg Foran. Investors viewed the strategy as a possible way to improve customer traffic and produce earnings growth despite intense industry competition. Kroger grocery strategy
• Neutral Sentiment: Kroger is reportedly planning to cut thousands of corporate positions as it expands artificial-intelligence tools and streamlines its business. The reductions could lower costs over time, but restructuring expenses and potential execution or employee-relations issues may weigh on near-term results. Kroger job cuts and AI plans
• Negative Sentiment: Albertsons is seeking approximately $8 billion from Kroger in litigation over their failed merger. Testimony has focused on whether Kroger offered an inadequate store-divestiture plan, creating a potentially significant financial and legal overhang. Albertsons lawsuit against Kroger
• Neutral Sentiment: Kroger’s former CEO defended the company’s efforts to complete the Albertsons transaction, while the current management team reiterated its standalone growth strategy. The court dispute may remain a source of volatility as the market assesses possible damages and settlement costs. Former Kroger CEO defends Albertsons deal

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on KR shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Wednesday. Melius Research set a $80.00 price target on Kroger and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Kroger in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group decreased their price objective on Kroger from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.35.

Kroger Stock Up 1.9%

NYSE KR opened at $64.16 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.59. The company has a fifty day moving average of $59.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $61.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.60, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.36. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $54.15 and a 52 week high of $76.58.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, September 11th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.04. Kroger had a net margin of 0.73% and a return on equity of 49.90%. The business had revenue of $34.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.04 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.300 EPS. On average, analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 16th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Kroger’s payout ratio is currently 84.78%.

About Kroger

The Kroger Co is a U.S. food and grocery retailer headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883, the company operates supermarkets under banners that include Kroger, Ralphs, Fred Meyer, King Soopers, Fry’s, Harris Teeter and Smith’s, among others.

Kroger’s business includes the sale of fresh food, groceries, general merchandise, household products and health and beauty items. Many of its stores also provide pharmacy services and fuel centers. The company offers digital shopping, pickup and delivery services, loyalty programs and a range of private-label products, including Simple Truth, Private Selection and Kroger-branded products.

Kroger primarily serves customers across the United States, with stores concentrated in the Midwest, South, West and parts of the Mid-Atlantic region.