US Bancorp DE Trims Holdings in The Kroger Co. $KR

Key Points

• US Bancorp DE cut its stake by 6.1% in The Kroger Co. in Q4, selling 32,145 shares and ending the quarter with 493,338 shares (about 0.08%) valued at roughly $30.82 million.
• Kroger beat quarterly EPS expectations ($1.28 vs. $1.20) while revenue slightly missed at $34.73 billion, and the company set FY2026 guidance of $5.10–$5.30 EPS (sell-side consensus ~5.24).
• Kroger announced a quarterly dividend of $0.35 (annualized $1.40, 2.1% yield; ex-dividend May 15, payable June 1), while analyst coverage is mixed with an average rating of "Hold" and an average target of $74.56 (8 Buys, 9 Holds).

US Bancorp DE cut its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 493,338 shares of the company's stock after selling 32,145 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE owned about 0.08% of Kroger worth $30,824,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $312,000. Narwhal Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 163.1% in the fourth quarter. Narwhal Capital Management now owns 30,081 shares of the company's stock worth $1,879,000 after buying an additional 18,649 shares in the last quarter. Interchange Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the fourth quarter worth about $209,000. Caldwell Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Caldwell Trust Co now owns 27,798 shares of the company's stock worth $1,737,000 after buying an additional 3,007 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 15.4% in the fourth quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 169,004 shares of the company's stock worth $10,559,000 after buying an additional 22,579 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KR has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Kroger from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Wolfe Research reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $75.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Roth Mkm reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $78.00 price target (up from $75.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, March 6th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $74.56.

Kroger Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of KR opened at $67.80 on Friday. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $70.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.82. The company has a market capitalization of $41.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.42. The Kroger Co. has a 1-year low of $58.60 and a 1-year high of $76.58.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The company reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $34.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.10 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 0.69% and a return on equity of 41.08%. Kroger's quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.14 earnings per share. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.300 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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.

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