QRG Capital Management Inc. Purchases 33,192 Shares of The Kroger Co. $KR

QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 7.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 498,268 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 33,192 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. owned 0.08% of Kroger worth $35,741,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Kroger by 85.3% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,397,771 shares of the company’s stock worth $433,065,000 after acquiring an additional 2,945,848 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Kroger during the first quarter valued at approximately $178,385,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 101.7% during the first quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 4,084,584 shares of the company’s stock valued at $276,485,000 after purchasing an additional 2,059,574 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 80.7% in the 2nd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 2,185,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $156,768,000 after purchasing an additional 976,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 1st quarter worth approximately $62,730,000. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kroger Trading Down 0.1%

Kroger stock opened at $66.30 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a one year low of $54.88 and a one year high of $74.90. The business’s fifty day moving average is $68.75 and its 200 day moving average is $68.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.93 billion, a PE ratio of 16.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued 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. The business had revenue of $33.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.08 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 32.62% and a net margin of 1.86%.Kroger’s revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.93 EPS. Kroger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.700-4.800 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 14th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 14th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kroger news, Director Clyde R. Moore sold 3,810 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.61, for a total transaction of $272,834.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 85,850 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,147,718.50. The trade was a 4.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KR has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays initiated coverage on Kroger in a research note on Monday, July 21st. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $75.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley set a $76.00 price target on Kroger and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $82.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Kroger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $75.00 price objective (down from $82.00) on shares of Kroger in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $73.63.

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.