M&G PLC Sells 91,145 Shares of The Kroger Co. $KR

M&G PLC reduced its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 22.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 321,038 shares of the company’s stock after selling 91,145 shares during the quarter. M&G PLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $23,115,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Kroger in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. boosted its stake in Kroger by 6,840.0% during the 2nd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 347 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new stake in Kroger during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Rossby Financial LCC bought a new position in shares of Kroger in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 10,425.0% during the second quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 421 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 417 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KR has been the topic of several recent analyst 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 on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $75.00 price target (down from $82.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $78.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, September 12th. Argus set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research note on Thursday, September 18th. Finally, Roth Mkm upgraded Kroger from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $66.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.50.

Kroger Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of Kroger stock opened at $65.05 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.55. The Kroger Co. has a 52-week low of $57.08 and a 52-week high of $74.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.95. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $66.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.74.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 11th. The company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $33.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.08 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 1.86% and a return on equity of 32.62%. The company’s revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.93 earnings per share. Kroger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.700-4.800 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 14th. Kroger’s payout ratio is presently 35.53%.

Kroger Company 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.