Night Squared LP Buys Shares of 14,973 The Kroger Co. $KR

Key Points

• Night Squared LP has made a new investment in The Kroger Co. by purchasing approximately 14,973 shares valued at around $1,014,000.
• The company reported earnings of $1.49 per share for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, but had a slight revenue decline of 0.3% year-over-year.
• Kroger announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.35 per share, which translates to an annualized yield of 2.1%.

Night Squared LP bought a new stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 14,973 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,014,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 194,354 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,156,000 after acquiring an additional 4,088 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Kroger during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Aperture Investors LLC boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 47.8% during the 1st quarter. Aperture Investors LLC now owns 46,723 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,163,000 after acquiring an additional 15,117 shares during the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 135.3% during the 1st quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 49,884 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,377,000 after acquiring an additional 28,686 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 10.1% during the 1st quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 7,021 shares of the company's stock valued at $475,000 after acquiring an additional 645 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 16,475 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.79, for a total transaction of $1,215,690.25. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 49,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,642,274.40. This trade represents a 25.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Gabriel Arreaga sold 37,960 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.44, for a total value of $2,749,822.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 75,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,448,791.92. This represents a 33.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 198,948 shares of company stock valued at $14,422,926. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Kroger Trading Down 0.7%

KR stock traded down $0.50 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $68.14. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,847,177 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,058,780. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.95. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $70.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $68.73. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $50.69 and a 1 year high of $74.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.57, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.59.

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

Kroger Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on KR shares. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $82.00 price target (up from $73.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Barclays started coverage on Kroger in a research report on Monday, July 21st. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $75.00 price target for the company. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $74.00 price target (up from $66.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Guggenheim raised their price target on Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Melius Research upgraded Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $70.58.

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.