The Kroger Co. $KR Shares Sold by Waterloo Capital L.P.

Waterloo Capital L.P. reduced its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 55.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,957 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,780 shares during the period. Waterloo Capital L.P.’s holdings in Kroger were worth $536,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its position in Kroger by 102.5% in the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 168,395 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,079,000 after acquiring an additional 85,223 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Kroger by 2,313.4% during the second quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 138,915 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,964,000 after purchasing an additional 133,159 shares during the last quarter. Advocate Group LLC increased its position in shares of Kroger by 16.6% during the second quarter. Advocate Group LLC now owns 121,392 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,707,000 after purchasing an additional 17,284 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 43.4% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 72,244 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,870,000 after purchasing an additional 21,876 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AdvisorShares Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 2nd quarter valued at about $480,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

More Kroger News

Here are the key news stories impacting Kroger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Social and trader sentiment is upbeat about Kroger’s rebound potential despite recent profit volatility; posts highlight a low forward P/E, long dividend history and traders adding long exposure — supporting momentum and buyer interest. Kroger Stock (KR) Opinions on Recent Earnings Report
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional activity shows large buys from firms like Wellington, UBS and Goldman, offsetting notable sells — heavy additions by major asset managers can be a near-term support for the stock. Institutional holdings and hedge fund activity
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage is favorable: recent “Buy/Outperform” notes and a median price target around $70 (several targets higher) give investors a visible upside reference that can lift sentiment. Analyst ratings and targets
• Neutral Sentiment: Kroger scheduled its Q4 2025 earnings conference call for March 5 — management commentary and Q&A could move the stock depending on guidance detail and margin commentary. Earnings call announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Management changes: Kroger named a new Central Division president as part of divisional reshuffling — typically neutral but worth watching for execution on regional performance. Kroger names new Central Division president
• Neutral Sentiment: Marketing and seasonal demand articles (Big Game/Valentine’s Day) and consumer tips increase traffic/awareness but are unlikely to materially change fundamentals on their own. In the Kitchen with Kroger
• Negative Sentiment: Kroger plans to close 18 retail health clinics in Georgia — closures signal portfolio pruning or cost actions but could reduce ancillary revenue and customer touchpoints in those markets. Kroger to reportedly close 18 health clinics in Georgia Kroger to close 18 retail health clinics
• Negative Sentiment: Store-safety incident: local reports of a fight and an individual reportedly pulling a gun prompted an evacuation at a Kroger store — negative for brand/safety perception in that location, though limited likely to be a localized, short-term impact. Kroger evacuated after fight breaks out Person reportedly pulls gun out during fight at local Kroger

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on KR. Wall Street Zen lowered Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 27th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $70.00 target price (down from $78.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Thursday, December 4th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $70.00 price target (down previously from $74.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Morgan Stanley set a $67.00 price target on shares of Kroger and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.07.

Kroger Stock Performance

NYSE:KR opened at $67.54 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $63.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.20. The Kroger Co. has a 1-year low of $58.60 and a 1-year high of $74.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The firm has a market cap of $42.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.62.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 4th. The company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.02. Kroger had a net margin of 0.54% and a return on equity of 38.06%. The company had revenue of $33.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.27 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.98 EPS. Kroger’s quarterly revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. Kroger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.750-4.800 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Kroger’s payout ratio is presently 129.63%.

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.