Investors Buy High Volume of Call Options on Kroger (NYSE:KR)

Key Points

• Traders purchased 19,552 call options on Kroger on Friday, about a 48% increase versus the typical daily call volume of 13,234, indicating unusually high bullish options activity.
• Analysts maintain a consensus of “Moderate Buy” with an average target of $74.56, though recent notes were mixed (Jefferies reiterated Buy with an $82 target while Wells Fargo downgraded to Equal Weight and cut its target).
• Kroger beat EPS estimates ($1.28 vs. $1.20) but missed revenue expectations, set FY2026 guidance of 5.100–5.300 EPS, and saw shares trade down 2.1% to $68.88; the company also declared a $0.35 quarterly dividend (a 2.0% yield) and is ~80.9% institutionally owned.

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Friday. Traders purchased 19,552 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 48% compared to the typical daily volume of 13,234 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $82.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut Kroger from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $70.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Kroger in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Barclays restated a "positive" rating on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating and set a $70.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $74.56.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kroger

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KR. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in Kroger by 27.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 15,733 shares of the company's stock valued at $962,000 after buying an additional 3,373 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP raised its stake in Kroger by 40.7% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 56,243 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,807,000 after buying an additional 16,270 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Kroger in the second quarter valued at about $201,000. Brown Advisory Inc. raised its stake in Kroger by 1.7% in the second quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 21,353 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,532,000 after buying an additional 359 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cresset Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 18.2% in the second quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 13,073 shares of the company's stock worth $938,000 after purchasing an additional 2,014 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Stock Down 2.1%

Shares of NYSE KR traded down $1.47 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $68.88. 1,507,632 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,830,475. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66. The stock has a market cap of $42.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.55. Kroger has a 1 year low of $58.60 and a 1 year high of $76.58. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $70.41 and a 200 day moving average of $66.68.

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

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. Kroger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 91.50%.

Kroger Company 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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