SCS Capital Management LLC Makes New Investment in The Kroger Co. $KR

Key Points

• SCS Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Kroger, purchasing 9,147 shares worth approximately $619,000 during the first quarter.
• Kroger announced a quarterly dividend of $0.35, increasing from $0.32, which represents a yield of 2.1% and a payout ratio of 38.15%.
• The company's recent earnings report showed a 1.89% net margin with earnings per share of $1.49, exceeding analysts' expectations.

SCS Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 9,147 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $619,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Capital Analysts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 46.7% in the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 550 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kroger news, VP Carin L. Fike sold 16,475 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.79, for a total value of $1,215,690.25. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 49,360 shares of the company's stock, 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 document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gabriel Arreaga sold 37,960 shares of the company'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 sale, the executive vice president owned 75,218 shares in the company, valued at $5,448,791.92. This represents a 33.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 198,948 shares of company stock valued at $14,422,926. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Kroger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KR opened at $67.03 on Thursday. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $50.69 and a fifty-two week high of $74.90. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $70.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $68.82. 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 firm has a market cap of $44.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.59.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $45.12 billion during 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%.Kroger's revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.43 EPS. Kroger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.600-4.800 EPS. On average, analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders 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 positive change from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Kroger's payout ratio is 38.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KR has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group set a $83.00 target price on Kroger and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered Kroger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $82.00 target price (up previously from $73.00) on shares of Kroger in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Kroger from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Kroger 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.