Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Grows Stock Position in The Kroger Co. $KR

Key Points

• Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its Kroger stake by 26% in Q1, and institutional investors now own about 80.93% of the company, indicating continued large-fund interest in the stock.
• Wall Street sentiment remains mixed but constructive: analysts rate Kroger Moderate Buy overall, with a consensus price target of $72 versus the stock’s recent price around $56.81.
• Kroger recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.39 per share from $0.35, while its latest earnings beat revenue estimates but missed EPS by a penny and management guided FY2026 EPS at 5.10–5.30.

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 26.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 280,141 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 57,782 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings in Kroger were worth $20,271,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in Kroger by 27.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 15,733 shares of the company's stock valued at $962,000 after purchasing an additional 3,373 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP raised its stake in Kroger by 40.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 56,243 shares of the company's stock worth $3,807,000 after purchasing an additional 16,270 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Kroger during the second quarter worth approximately $201,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 11.5% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 97,288 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,978,000 after purchasing an additional 10,051 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nebula Research & Development LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kroger in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,840,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, June 1st. Telsey Advisory Group set a $78.00 target price on Kroger and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Kroger from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Evercore restated an "outperform" rating and set a $78.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Kroger from $71.00 to $61.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $72.00.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of KR stock opened at $56.81 on Friday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $60.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $65.39. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $54.15 and a 52 week high of $76.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.43. The company has a market cap of $34.80 billion, a PE ratio of 33.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.44.

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

Kroger Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Saturday, August 15th will be given a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This is a positive change from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 82.35%.

Trending Headlines about Kroger

Here are the key news stories impacting Kroger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kroger Health launched its new GLP-1 Complete Support Program, with dietitians providing guidance for patients using weight-management medications. This could strengthen Kroger’s health-services offering and create a new customer-engagement opportunity. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: A back-to-school hiring event is seeking to fill hundreds of store jobs across four states, signaling Kroger is still investing in store operations and labor coverage heading into a busy retail period. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Kroger’s ongoing automation and robotics efforts in Columbus-area stores may support efficiency and long-term margin improvement. Article Title

About Kroger

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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