State of Michigan Retirement System Has $165.35 Million Stake in The Kroger Co. $KR

Key Points

• State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its Kroger stake by 64.1% in the first quarter, ending with 2.29 million shares worth about $165.35 million. Kroger now represents roughly 0.9% of the fund’s portfolio and its 18th-largest holding.
• Wall Street sentiment on Kroger is mixed but slightly positive, with an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72. Analysts cited include UBS at $63 (neutral), Guggenheim at $71 (buy), and JPMorgan at $70 (neutral).
• Kroger recently posted quarterly earnings of $1.58 per share, just below estimates, while revenue came in at $46.12 billion, above expectations and up 2.2% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.39 per share from $0.35.

State of Michigan Retirement System increased its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 64.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,285,087 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 892,500 shares during the quarter. Kroger accounts for approximately 0.9% of State of Michigan Retirement System's portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. State of Michigan Retirement System owned approximately 0.37% of Kroger worth $165,349,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of KR. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 77,169,425 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,821,546,000 after purchasing an additional 868,529 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 31,948,112 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,153,622,000 after buying an additional 386,503 shares during the period. GQG Partners LLC increased its position in Kroger by 11.3% in the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 13,398,072 shares of the company's stock valued at $837,113,000 after buying an additional 1,360,946 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Kroger by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 12,242,401 shares of the company's stock worth $764,932,000 after buying an additional 122,606 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Kroger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $470,561,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on KR shares. UBS Group set a $63.00 price objective on Kroger and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $71.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, June 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Kroger from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Kroger from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $72.00.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of KR opened at $59.40 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.44. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $54.15 and a 52 week high of $76.58. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $62.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $65.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.43, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.79.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $46.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $45.59 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 0.71% and a return on equity of 44.33%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.49 EPS. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.30 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 5.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Saturday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This is a boost from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.35%.

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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