Arvest Bank Trust Division Buys Shares of 46,784 The Kroger Co. $KR

Arvest Bank Trust Division purchased a new position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 46,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,385,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 27.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 15,733 shares of the company’s stock worth $962,000 after buying an additional 3,373 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP grew its stake in Kroger by 40.7% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 56,243 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,807,000 after acquiring an additional 16,270 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Kroger during the 2nd quarter valued at about $201,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in Kroger by 11.5% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 97,288 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,978,000 after acquiring an additional 10,051 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nebula Research & Development LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the second quarter valued at about $1,840,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $57.81 on Wednesday. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $54.15 and a 1 year high of $76.58. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $61.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $65.54. The firm has a market cap of $35.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.43, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 18th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.59 by ($0.01). Kroger had a net margin of 0.71% and a return on equity of 44.33%. The business had revenue of $46.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $45.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.49 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.30 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 5.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Saturday, August 15th will be paid a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This is an increase from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Kroger’s payout ratio is currently 82.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KR has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Kroger from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Telsey Advisory Group set a $78.00 target price on Kroger and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Kroger from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Erste Group Bank downgraded Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.00.

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.