The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totaling 27,300,000 shares, a decrease of 33.1% from the September 15th total of 40,790,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 7,070,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.9 days. Currently, 4.2% of the shares of the company are short sold. Currently, 4.2% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 7,070,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.9 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Kroger by 1.3% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 14,299,898 shares of the company’s stock worth $967,863,000 after purchasing an additional 186,302 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Kroger in the second quarter worth $518,267,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Kroger by 85.3% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,397,771 shares of the company’s stock worth $433,065,000 after purchasing an additional 2,945,848 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Kroger by 0.6% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,067,209 shares of the company’s stock worth $342,999,000 after purchasing an additional 31,477 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Kroger by 7.9% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,126,866 shares of the company’s stock worth $296,028,000 after purchasing an additional 300,784 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Down 2.2%

KR stock opened at $67.63 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.17, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.57. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $67.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $69.11. Kroger has a fifty-two week low of $55.60 and a fifty-two week high of $74.90.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 11th. The company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.04. Kroger had a return on equity of 32.62% and a net margin of 1.86%.The company had revenue of $33.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.93 earnings per share. Kroger’s revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. Kroger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.700-4.800 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Kroger will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 14th will be given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 14th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on KR shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Kroger in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $75.00 price target (down previously from $82.00) on shares of Kroger in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Roth Capital upgraded Kroger from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on Kroger in a research report on Monday, July 21st. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $75.00 price objective on the stock. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.50.

Kroger Company Profile

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.