Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Sells 287,744 Shares of The Kroger Co. $KR

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group sold 287,744 shares of Kroger in Q4, trimming its stake by 15.7% to 1,548,979 shares (about 0.24% of the company), with institutional investors collectively owning roughly 80.9% of Kroger.
• Wall Street sentiment is broadly positive with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $74.56, as analysts have recently raised targets and one firm (Erste) began coverage with a "buy."
• Kroger beat Q results on EPS ($1.28 vs. $1.20 estimate) while revenue slightly missed, set FY2026 guidance of $5.10–$5.30 EPS, and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.35 (2.1% yield; DPR ~91.5%), ex-dividend May 15 and payable June 1.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 15.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,548,979 shares of the company's stock after selling 287,744 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.24% of Kroger worth $96,780,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in Kroger by 43.4% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 72,244 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,870,000 after acquiring an additional 21,876 shares during the period. Liberty One Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Kroger by 85.0% in the third quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC now owns 857,667 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,828,000 after acquiring an additional 394,060 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in Kroger by 45.5% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 855,810 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,690,000 after acquiring an additional 267,434 shares during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd lifted its holdings in Kroger by 401.3% in the third quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 19,470 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,293,000 after acquiring an additional 15,586 shares during the period. Finally, Money Concepts Capital Corp lifted its holdings in Kroger by 64.7% in the third quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp now owns 45,267 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,051,000 after acquiring an additional 17,777 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on KR shares. Citigroup increased their target price on Kroger from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Telsey Advisory Group upped their price target on Kroger from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, March 27th. BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Erste Group Bank began coverage on Kroger in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kroger currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $74.56.

Kroger Stock Performance

NYSE:KR opened at $67.99 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $58.60 and a 12-month high of $76.58. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $70.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.55.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The company reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.08. Kroger had a return on equity of 41.08% and a net margin of 0.69%.The firm had revenue of $34.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $35.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.14 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.300 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 91.50%.

Kroger Profile

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding KR? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.