IFM Investors Pty Ltd Boosts Stock Holdings in The Kroger Co. $KR

Key Points

• IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its holdings in The Kroger Co. by 11.4% in the first quarter, owning 110,362 shares valued at approximately $7.47 million by the end of the reporting period.
• Kroger's stock has received positive upgrades from multiple analysts, with target prices ranging from $67.00 to $82.00, and a consensus rating of "Hold."
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.35 per share, up from the previous $0.32, reflecting a commitment to returning value to shareholders.

IFM Investors Pty Ltd raised its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 11.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 110,362 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 11,327 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd's holdings in Kroger were worth $7,470,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of KR. Steadfast Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter valued at about $277,989,000. 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 valued at $433,065,000 after acquiring an additional 2,945,848 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the first quarter valued at about $178,385,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. grew its position in shares of Kroger by 101.7% in the 1st quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 4,084,584 shares of the company's stock worth $276,485,000 after buying an additional 2,059,574 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Kroger by 7,363.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,706,397 shares of the company's stock worth $115,506,000 after buying an additional 1,683,535 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Melius Research upgraded Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Melius raised shares of Kroger from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Kroger from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Kroger from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $70.58.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 3,810 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.61, for a total value of $272,834.10. Following the sale, the director directly owned 85,850 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,147,718.50. This represents a 4.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Timothy A. Massa sold 8,415 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.00, for a total value of $622,710.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 118,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,788,314. This represents a 6.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 198,948 shares of company stock worth $14,422,926. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of KR stock opened at $67.03 on Thursday. The Kroger Co. has a 12 month low of $50.69 and a 12 month high of $74.90. The stock has a market cap of $44.30 billion, a PE ratio of 18.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92. The company's fifty day moving average price is $70.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $68.82.

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

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were issued 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.15%.

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.

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