AQR Capital Management LLC Sells 647,295 Shares of The Kroger Co. $KR

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in The Kroger Co. by 14%, owning approximately 3.99 million shares worth about $270 million after selling nearly 650,000 shares.
• Kroger's latest earnings report showed an EPS of $1.49, exceeding expectations, with quarterly revenue of $45.12 billion—a slight decrease of 0.3% year-over-year.
• The company recently increased its quarterly dividend from $0.32 to $0.35, yielding around 2.0% annually, reflecting a payout ratio of 38.15%.

AQR Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 14.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,987,931 shares of the company's stock after selling 647,295 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.60% of Kroger worth $269,943,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of KR. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 1.3% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 85.3% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,363,964 shares of the company's stock valued at $389,156,000 after acquiring an additional 865,699 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,067,209 shares of the company's stock valued at $342,999,000 after acquiring an additional 31,477 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Steadfast Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter valued at about $277,989,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of KR stock traded down $0.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $67.74. The stock had a trading volume of 5,575,044 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,407,211. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $70.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.79. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92. The Kroger Co. has a one year low of $50.69 and a one year high of $74.90. The firm has a market cap of $44.77 billion, a PE ratio of 18.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.59.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $45.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $45.35 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 34.71% and a net margin of 1.89%.The company's quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.43 EPS. Kroger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.600-4.800 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This is a boost from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is 38.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $74.00 price objective (up previously from $66.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Roth Capital increased their price objective on Kroger from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Melius raised Kroger from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $70.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley set a $76.00 price objective on Kroger and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Guggenheim raised their target price on Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $70.58.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In related news, EVP Gabriel Arreaga sold 37,960 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.44, for a total transaction of $2,749,822.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 75,218 shares in the company, valued at $5,448,791.92. This trade represents a 33.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 26,814 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.50, for a total value of $1,890,387.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 99,143 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,989,581.50. This trade represents a 21.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 198,948 shares of company stock worth $14,422,926 over the last three months. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Kroger 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.