Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Cuts Stake in The Kroger Co. $KR

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lowered its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 305,399 shares of the company’s stock after selling 17,473 shares during the quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Kroger were worth $16,959,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in KR. SGL Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Kroger in the second quarter worth $2,764,000. Allstate Corp lifted its stake in shares of Kroger by 108.5% in the fourth quarter. Allstate Corp now owns 47,991 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,998,000 after buying an additional 24,976 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Kroger during the 2nd quarter valued at $76,633,000. Conning Inc. boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 10,178.7% during the fourth quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 507,459 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,706,000 after buying an additional 502,522 shares during the last quarter. Finally, North Dakota State Investment Board purchased a new position in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,299,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on KR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Kroger from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Kroger in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $71.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $58.00 target price on Kroger in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.00.

Key Headlines Impacting Kroger

Here are the key news stories impacting Kroger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kroger announced its 2026 Wellness Tour, with September in-store and community events intended to increase customer engagement and reinforce the company’s health-and-wellness offerings. The initiative is strategically positive, though its near-term financial impact is likely limited. Kroger Wellness Tour announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually heavy call-option activity, with purchases more than double the typical daily volume, suggests increased bullish speculative interest. However, options activity does not guarantee sustained buying in the stock.
• Neutral Sentiment: Murray’s Cheese, a Kroger brand, expanded its premium cave-aged collection to select Harris Teeter stores in Charlotte. The launch supports product differentiation and potentially higher-margin sales but is unlikely to materially affect companywide results. Murray’s Cheese Harris Teeter launch
• Neutral Sentiment: Kroger’s recent earnings showed revenue growth and earnings ahead of the prior-year period, but earnings per share narrowly missed estimates. Management’s fiscal-year EPS guidance remains a key factor for investors assessing whether the current valuation is justified.
• Negative Sentiment: Industry data indicated Kroger’s foot traffic declined in July as the broader supermarket sector also struggled. Persistent traffic weakness could pressure comparable sales and raise concerns about consumer demand. Kroger July foot traffic report
• Negative Sentiment: Kroger agreed to pay $17 million to settle a class-action lawsuit alleging prescription-drug pricing practices. The cash cost is manageable relative to Kroger’s size, but the settlement adds legal expense and reputational risk. Kroger prescription pricing settlement
• Negative Sentiment: Sony Music sued Kroger over alleged unauthorized use of songs in social-media advertising, creating another potential legal liability. The financial impact is uncertain, but the lawsuit adds to investor concerns following the pharmacy settlement. Sony Music lawsuit against Kroger

Kroger Stock Performance

NYSE:KR opened at $57.73 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.37 billion, a PE ratio of 33.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a fifty day moving average of $57.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $64.41. The Kroger Co. has a fifty-two week low of $54.15 and a fifty-two week high of $76.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.43, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, June 18th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $46.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $45.59 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 44.33% and a net margin of 0.71%.The firm’s revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.49 earnings per share. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.30 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 5.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Saturday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This is a boost from Kroger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is 91.76%.

Kroger Company Profile

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.