Bayforest Capital Ltd Invests $175,000 in The Kroger Co. $KR

Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 2,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $175,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Kroger by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 14,299,898 shares of the company’s stock worth $967,863,000 after acquiring an additional 186,302 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position 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 buying an additional 2,945,848 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Kroger by 0.6% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,067,209 shares of the company’s stock worth $342,999,000 after buying an additional 31,477 shares during the period. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. increased its position in Kroger by 101.7% during the first quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 4,084,584 shares of the company’s stock worth $276,485,000 after buying an additional 2,059,574 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Kroger during the first quarter worth approximately $178,385,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of KR stock opened at $68.85 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $68.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $69.10. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $55.60 and a twelve month high of $74.90. The company has a market capitalization of $45.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85.

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

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 14th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 14th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Kroger’s payout ratio is 35.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $78.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Friday, September 12th. Barclays assumed coverage on Kroger in a research report on Monday, July 21st. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $75.00 price target (down previously from $82.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Roth Mkm raised Kroger from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $66.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Roth Capital raised Kroger from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $73.53.

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.