The Kroger Co. $KR Shares Sold by Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd

Key Points

• Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd reduced its holdings in The Kroger Co. by 14.1%, now owning 118,479 shares valued at approximately $8.02 million.
• Kroger recently reported quarterly earnings of $1.49 per share, beating estimates, but revenue decreased by 0.3% year-over-year.
• The company is set to increase its dividend to $0.35 per share, with a yield of 2.1%, reflecting a positive change from the previous dividend of $0.32.

Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd cut its holdings in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 14.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 118,479 shares of the company's stock after selling 19,394 shares during the quarter. Kroger comprises 1.7% of Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 15th largest position. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Kroger were worth $8,020,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. IFC Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 1.7% in the first quarter. IFC Advisors LLC now owns 8,642 shares of the company's stock worth $585,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its stake in Kroger by 2.0% during the first quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 8,049 shares of the company's stock worth $545,000 after buying an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Gratus Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Kroger by 1.6% during the first quarter. Gratus Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,182 shares of the company's stock worth $757,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its stake 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, Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC boosted its stake in Kroger by 2.8% during the first quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC now owns 7,187 shares of the company's stock worth $486,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Yael Cosset sold 71,224 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.49, for a total transaction of $5,234,251.76. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 139,124 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,224,222.76. This represents a 33.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mary Ellen Adcock sold 34,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.16, for a total transaction of $2,437,230.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 184,473 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,127,098.68. The trade was a 15.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 198,948 shares of company stock worth $14,422,926 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on Kroger from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $75.00 price objective (down previously from $82.00) on shares of Kroger in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $83.00 price objective on Kroger and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Kroger from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Kroger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $70.58.

Kroger Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of Kroger stock traded up $0.37 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $67.83. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,420,800 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,593,639. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $50.69 and a twelve month high of $74.90. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $71.10 and a 200-day moving average of $68.72. The stock has a market cap of $44.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.95.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. Kroger had a return on equity of 34.71% and a net margin of 1.89%.The firm had revenue of $45.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $45.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.43 EPS. Kroger's revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. Kroger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.600-4.800 EPS. Research analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is currently 38.15%.

Kroger Company 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.