Teza Capital Management LLC Acquires Shares of 6,041 The Kroger Co. $KR

Key Points

• Teza Capital Management LLC has purchased a new stake in Kroger Co., acquiring 6,041 shares valued at approximately $409,000.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Kroger, with Melius Research upgrading it to a "hold" and Telsey Advisory Group setting a target price of $82.00, up from $73.00.
• Kroger recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.35 per share, which translates to an annualized dividend of $1.40 and a yield of 2.1%.

Teza Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 6,041 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $409,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in KR. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Kroger during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Kroger during the first quarter worth about $31,000. Capital Analysts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its stake in Kroger by 46.7% during the 1st 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. bought a new position in shares of Kroger during the first quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Kroger Stock Performance

KR stock traded down $0.61 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $67.03. 9,296,857 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,658,168. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92. The business has a 50-day moving average of $70.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $68.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.30 billion, a PE ratio of 18.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.59. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $50.69 and a 52 week high of $74.90.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last released 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 firm had revenue of $45.12 billion for 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%.The company's revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.43 EPS. Kroger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.600-4.800 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. This is an increase from Kroger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Kroger's dividend payout ratio is 38.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $82.00 target price (up from $73.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Morgan Stanley set a $76.00 target price on Kroger and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Melius raised Kroger from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $83.00 price objective on shares of Kroger and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Kroger from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Seven research 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.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $70.58.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other news, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 3,810 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.61, for a total transaction of $272,834.10. Following the sale, the director directly owned 85,850 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,147,718.50. The trade was a 4.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy A. Massa sold 8,415 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.00, for a total transaction of $622,710.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 118,761 shares in the company, valued at $8,788,314. This represents a 6.62% decrease in their position. 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 three months. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

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.