Samlyn Capital LLC Purchases 683,076 Shares of The Kroger Co. $KR

Key Points

• Samlyn Capital LLC increased its stake in The Kroger Co. by 66.1% in Q1, owning 1,716,780 shares worth $116.21 million, making it the firm's 21st largest investment.
• Kroger reported a Q2 EPS of $1.49, surpassing analysts’ expectations of $1.45, while also announcing a higher quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share.
• The current consensus rating for Kroger's stock is "Hold," with analysts setting an average price target of $70.58, reflecting mixed expectations for future performance.

Samlyn Capital LLC grew its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 66.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,716,780 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 683,076 shares during the period. Kroger comprises approximately 1.7% of Samlyn Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Samlyn Capital LLC owned approximately 0.26% of Kroger worth $116,209,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in KR. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Kroger during the first quarter worth $25,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Kroger during the first quarter worth $31,000. Capital Analysts LLC acquired a new position in Kroger during the first quarter worth $36,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its holdings in Kroger by 46.7% during the first quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 550 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. acquired a new position in Kroger during the first quarter worth $38,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 3,810 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.61, for a total value of $272,834.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 85,850 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,147,718.50. The trade was a 4.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Gabriel Arreaga sold 37,960 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.44, for a total transaction of $2,749,822.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 75,218 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,448,791.92. The trade was a 33.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 198,948 shares of company stock valued at $14,422,926 in the last 90 days. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KR traded down $0.29 on Tuesday, hitting $67.71. The company had a trading volume of 7,410,760 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,667,723. The Kroger Co. has a 1-year low of $50.69 and a 1-year high of $74.90. The stock has a market cap of $44.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $70.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $68.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $45.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $45.35 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.89% and a return on equity of 34.71%. Kroger's quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.43 earnings per share. Kroger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.600-4.800 EPS. Analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current 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 given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. This is a boost from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. 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%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KR has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $82.00 target price (up from $73.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, June 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $75.00 price objective (down from $82.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Kroger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Melius Research upgraded shares of Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price 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.