76,501 Shares in The Kroger Co. $KR Purchased by Jupiter Topco LLC

Key Points

• Jupiter Topco LLC purchased 76,501 Kroger shares worth approximately $4.25 million in the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 80.93% of Kroger’s outstanding stock.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with Kroger receiving a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $71.75, despite several recent target reductions and hold ratings.
• Kroger reported quarterly revenue of $46.12 billion, up 2.2% year over year, while narrowly missing earnings estimates. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.39 per share, yielding approximately 2.7% annually.

Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 76,501 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,248,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. SGL Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Kroger during the second quarter valued at $2,764,000. Allstate Corp grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 108.5% in the 4th quarter. Allstate Corp now owns 47,991 shares of the company's stock worth $2,998,000 after buying an additional 24,976 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 2nd quarter worth about $76,633,000. Conning Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 10,178.7% in the 4th quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 507,459 shares of the company's stock worth $31,706,000 after buying an additional 502,522 shares during the last quarter. Finally, North Dakota State Investment Board purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,299,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Kroger from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $82.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, June 19th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $58.00 price target on Kroger in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Kroger from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 20th. Finally, Barclays set a $61.00 price objective on shares of Kroger and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $71.75.

Kroger Trading Up 0.7%

NYSE:KR opened at $57.94 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $57.69 and a 200 day moving average of $64.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.43. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $54.15 and a 52 week high of $76.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.08, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.41.

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

Kroger Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Saturday, August 15th were issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. This is a positive change from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is presently 91.76%.

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.

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