The Kroger Co. $KR Shares Sold by Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC

Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC cut its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 33.8% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 19,456 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,946 shares during the period. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Kroger were worth $1,140,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KR. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the second quarter worth $3,016,956,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 0.4% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 12,296,026 shares of the company’s stock valued at $889,878,000 after acquiring an additional 53,625 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 17.0% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,041,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $437,129,000 after acquiring an additional 876,168 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in Kroger during the second quarter worth about $284,501,000. Finally, Amundi increased its position in Kroger by 17.9% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 3,332,191 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,116,000 after acquiring an additional 506,776 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Key Kroger News

Here are the key news stories impacting Kroger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: High gasoline prices are driving shoppers toward Kroger’s fuel-points program, which can support customer retention, shopping frequency and loyalty-program engagement. Kroger and Costco shoppers refuse to let record gas prices win
• Positive Sentiment: Kroger is bringing back Boar’s Head deli products, restoring a recognizable offering that could help recover deli sales and improve customer satisfaction. Kroger brings back Boar’s Head deli products
• Positive Sentiment: More private-label merchandise and new products, including nationwide sales of Incredifulls PAW Patrol PB&J cups, could support value perception, product differentiation and higher-margin sales. Why you’ll see more house brands at your Kroger PAW Patrol PB&J cups launch nationwide at Kroger
• Positive Sentiment: Kroger is expanding in a fast-growing market, with another store planned for late 2027, providing a potential long-term sales-growth opportunity. Kroger aims to open new store
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports on holiday hours, a paused 24-hour-store test, employee dress-code changes, weekly promotions, discounted California wine and the return of a Kroger banner to a former JCPenney location are operational updates with limited immediate earnings impact.
• Neutral Sentiment: A quarterly peer comparison provides context for Kroger’s performance, but the available report does not identify a new company-specific earnings or guidance change. Q2 rundown: Kroger versus other grocery stocks
• Negative Sentiment: A U.S. senator criticized Kroger’s Giant Eagle deal, potentially increasing political and antitrust scrutiny and uncertainty around the transaction. Senator slams Kroger Giant Eagle deal
• Negative Sentiment: Albertsons’ allegation that Kroger destroyed merger evidence adds litigation and governance risk, potentially complicating the company’s legal defense and merger strategy. Albertsons accuses Kroger of destroying merger evidence

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $66.00 price objective (down from $71.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, September 14th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Roth Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price target on Kroger from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 14th. Finally, Barclays set a $61.00 price target on Kroger and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $69.82.

Insider Transactions at Kroger

In related news, EVP Mary Adcock sold 72,901 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.70, for a total value of $4,425,090.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 175,233 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,636,643.10. This trade represents a 29.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Kroger Stock Up 3.5%

KR stock opened at $61.33 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $54.15 and a 52 week high of $76.58. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $58.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $62.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.59. The company has a market cap of $36.22 billion, a PE ratio of 33.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.36.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, September 11th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.04. Kroger had a net margin of 0.73% and a return on equity of 49.90%. The firm had revenue of $34.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.04 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.300 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 5.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 16th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 16th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 84.78%.

Kroger Company Profile

The Kroger Co is a U.S.-based food and consumer goods retailer headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1883 by Bernard Kroger, the company has grown into one of the largest supermarket operators in the United States.

Kroger operates supermarkets, multi-department stores, marketplace-format stores, pharmacies and fuel centers. Its stores sell groceries, fresh produce, meat, seafood, bakery and deli products, household essentials, health and beauty items, and general merchandise. The company also offers digital shopping, pickup and delivery services, loyalty programs, and a range of private-label products.

The company serves customers across numerous U.S.