The Kroger Co. $KR Shares Sold by Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. cut its stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,385,373 shares of the company’s stock after selling 194,393 shares during the quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. owned about 0.23% of Kroger worth $81,211,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of KR. Louisbourg Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 18.3% in the third quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. now owns 3,325 shares of the company’s stock valued at $195,000 after buying an additional 515 shares in the last quarter. Cypress Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cypress Capital LLC now owns 47,029 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,757,000 after buying an additional 1,950 shares during the period. Kenora Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. Kenora Financial LLC now owns 4,726 shares of the company’s stock valued at $277,000 after buying an additional 302 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC lifted its position in Kroger by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 4,274 shares of the company’s stock worth $251,000 after acquiring an additional 306 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Retirement Planning Group LLC lifted its position in Kroger by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Planning Group LLC now owns 6,304 shares of the company’s stock worth $370,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In other news, EVP Mary Adcock sold 72,901 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 175,233 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,636,643.10. This represents a 29.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on KR. Melius Research set a $80.00 target price on shares of Kroger and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Telsey Advisory Group cut their target price on shares of Kroger from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 14th. Evercore set a $70.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $68.00 price target (up from $66.00) on shares of Kroger in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Roth Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, September 14th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.35.

Key Headlines Impacting Kroger

Here are the key news stories impacting Kroger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kroger plans to invest approximately $5 billion by 2029 to lower prices, strengthen its value proposition and win market share. Management is targeting roughly 3% annual comparable sales growth, 3%-6% adjusted EBITDA growth and 7%-11% adjusted EPS growth through 2029. Kroger long-term financial targets
• Positive Sentiment: The company intends to open about 110 new stores and refresh existing locations, with updated formats allocating more space to fresh food and e-commerce. The expansion could support revenue growth and improve Kroger’s competitiveness against Walmart, Amazon and other grocers. Kroger store formats and expansion
• Positive Sentiment: Management is simplifying operations and focusing more closely on its core grocery business under CEO Greg Foran. Investors viewed the strategy as a possible way to improve customer traffic and produce earnings growth despite intense industry competition. Kroger grocery strategy
• Neutral Sentiment: Kroger is reportedly planning to cut thousands of corporate positions as it expands artificial-intelligence tools and streamlines its business. The reductions could lower costs over time, but restructuring expenses and potential execution or employee-relations issues may weigh on near-term results. Kroger job cuts and AI plans
• Negative Sentiment: Albertsons is seeking approximately $8 billion from Kroger in litigation over their failed merger. Testimony has focused on whether Kroger offered an inadequate store-divestiture plan, creating a potentially significant financial and legal overhang. Albertsons lawsuit against Kroger
• Neutral Sentiment: Kroger’s former CEO defended the company’s efforts to complete the Albertsons transaction, while the current management team reiterated its standalone growth strategy. The court dispute may remain a source of volatility as the market assesses possible damages and settlement costs. Former Kroger CEO defends Albertsons deal

Kroger Stock Performance

KR stock opened at $64.16 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.87, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.36. The Kroger Co. has a 1 year low of $54.15 and a 1 year high of $76.58. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $59.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $61.43.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its earnings results on Friday, September 11th. The company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.04 EPS. Kroger’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.300 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 5.19 EPS for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 16th. Kroger’s payout ratio is 84.78%.

About Kroger

The Kroger Co is a U.S. food and grocery retailer headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883, the company operates supermarkets under banners that include Kroger, Ralphs, Fred Meyer, King Soopers, Fry’s, Harris Teeter and Smith’s, among others.

Kroger’s business includes the sale of fresh food, groceries, general merchandise, household products and health and beauty items. Many of its stores also provide pharmacy services and fuel centers. The company offers digital shopping, pickup and delivery services, loyalty programs and a range of private-label products, including Simple Truth, Private Selection and Kroger-branded products.

Kroger primarily serves customers across the United States, with stores concentrated in the Midwest, South, West and parts of the Mid-Atlantic region.