Comerica Bank Sells 11,323 Shares of The Kroger Co. $KR

Comerica Bank reduced its stake in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 11.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 87,467 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,323 shares during the quarter. Comerica Bank’s holdings in Kroger were worth $5,465,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. WESPAC Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. WESPAC Advisors LLC now owns 13,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $916,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. WPG Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 16.8% during the 3rd quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 1,160 shares of the company’s stock worth $78,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas now owns 18,846 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,270,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,869 shares of the company’s stock worth $665,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 6,859 shares of the company’s stock worth $462,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Barclays reiterated a “positive” rating on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Morgan Stanley set a $73.00 target price on shares of Kroger and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $78.00 target price on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kroger has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $74.56.

Kroger Price Performance

KR stock opened at $67.80 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $70.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.82. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $58.60 and a 12-month high of $76.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.31, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 5th. The company reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.08. Kroger had a net margin of 0.69% and a return on equity of 41.08%. The firm had revenue of $34.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.14 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.300 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Kroger’s payout ratio is presently 91.50%.

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.