Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd Has $14.21 Million Stock Position in The Kroger Co. $KR

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd boosted its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 16.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 210,856 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 30,203 shares during the quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Kroger were worth $14,214,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 61.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 33,367,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,249,307,000 after purchasing an additional 12,652,261 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 1.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 31,948,112 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,153,622,000 after buying an additional 386,503 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Kroger in the 2nd quarter valued at $518,267,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Kroger by 15.8% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,327,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $426,515,000 after purchasing an additional 865,559 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its holdings in Kroger by 66.6% during the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 5,255,084 shares of the company’s stock worth $354,245,000 after acquiring an additional 2,100,444 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on KR. Morgan Stanley set a $73.00 price target on Kroger and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Kroger from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Telsey Advisory Group raised their target price on Kroger from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Wall Street Zen lowered Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 27th. Finally, Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $78.00 price target (up from $75.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.56.

Kroger Price Performance

NYSE KR opened at $73.79 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $67.52 and its 200-day moving average is $66.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66. The company has a market capitalization of $46.70 billion, a PE ratio of 48.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.62. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $58.60 and a 12-month high of $76.58.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The company reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.14 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.300 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 91.50%.

About Kroger

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.