Kroger Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:KR)

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) saw unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Traders bought 20,697 call options on the company. This is an increase of 53% compared to the average volume of 13,485 call options.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its position in Kroger by 102.5% in the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its holdings in Kroger by 43.4% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 72,244 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,870,000 after purchasing an additional 21,876 shares in the last quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 85.0% in the third quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC now owns 857,667 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,828,000 after purchasing an additional 394,060 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 45.5% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 855,810 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,690,000 after purchasing an additional 267,434 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mediolanum International Funds Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 401.3% in the third quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 19,470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,293,000 after purchasing an additional 15,586 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kroger Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of Kroger stock traded down $1.16 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $70.72. 3,410,620 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,161,828. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.75 billion, a PE ratio of 46.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.62. Kroger has a 1-year low of $58.60 and a 1-year high of $76.58. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $68.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.42.

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

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is presently 91.50%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on KR. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, December 29th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective (down from $74.00) on shares of Kroger in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Kroger from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $70.00 to $68.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $78.00 price target (up from $75.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.56.

Kroger News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Kroger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kroger is investing roughly $112M in central Ohio for new stores and renovations and is hiring for multiple new locations, supporting revenue growth and market share gains from physical expansion. Kroger invests $112 million in central Ohio, including two new stores
• Positive Sentiment: Local hiring pushes (250 jobs at an East Noblesville superstore) reflect capacity build-out and localized demand support. Kroger’s East Noblesville Superstore Hiring Spree Puts 250 Jobs On The Table
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts/columnists argue Kroger looks attractively valued vs. competitors, which could support upside if fundamentals continue to improve. As A Stock, Walmart Offers Poor Value While Kroger Is Priced At A Discount
• Neutral Sentiment: Kroger’s recent quarter beat EPS estimates while revenue slightly missed; management set FY2026 guidance of $5.10–$5.30 EPS, a key driver for medium‑term expectations. Non-Discretionary Retail Stocks Q4 Results: Benchmarking Kroger (NYSE:KR)
• Neutral Sentiment: Kroger refunded $1.4M to Groveland related to city projects/infrastructure — a small near-term cash outlay but signals local compliance and community engagement. Kroger refunds $1.4M to Groveland for city projects, infrastructure upgrades
• Neutral Sentiment: Wider rollout of digital price tags (with Walmart) could enable dynamic pricing and margin management long term, but has sparked short‑term consumer/pricing concerns. Walmart and Kroger Roll Out Digital Price Tags, Sparking Surge Pricing Fears
• Negative Sentiment: Kroger is named in a large frozen-food recall (part of ~37M pounds recalled across brands), raising short-term cost, supply-chain disruption and reputational risk. Trader Joe’s, Kroger named in 37M pounds of recalled frozen food
• Negative Sentiment: Several local crime incidents at Kroger stores (shooting, assaults) add reputational and potential liability concerns for store operations. Runaway teen arrested in attempted bathroom assault at Kroger

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.