The Kroger Co. $KR Shares Bought by Janney Montgomery Scott LLC

Key Points

• Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in Kroger by 15.1%, acquiring an additional 20,912 shares, bringing its total holdings to 159,309 shares valued at $11.43 million.
• Kroger reported earnings of $1.04 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, although its revenue of $33.94 billion fell slightly short of the consensus estimate.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, with a yield of 2.1%, set to be paid on December 1st, 2023.

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 15.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 159,309 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 20,912 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC's holdings in Kroger were worth $11,427,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Kroger during the first quarter worth $25,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Kroger during the first quarter valued at about $31,000. Capital Analysts LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger during the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its position in Kroger by 46.7% during the first 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 period. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Kroger during the first quarter worth about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

Kroger Trading Down 0.1%

Kroger stock opened at $66.30 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $54.88 and a 52 week high of $74.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.93 billion, a PE ratio of 16.83, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.57. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $68.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $68.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.95.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, September 11th. The company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.04. Kroger had a return on equity of 32.62% and a net margin of 1.86%.The business had revenue of $33.94 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.08 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.93 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Kroger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.700-4.800 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 14th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 14th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on KR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $75.00 price target (down previously from $82.00) on shares of Kroger in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Wall Street Zen lowered Kroger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, September 21st. Roth Mkm raised Kroger from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $66.00 to $75.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Kroger in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $76.00 price objective on Kroger and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kroger has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $73.63.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 3,810 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at $6,147,718.50. This trade represents a 4.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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