Investors Buy High Volume of Call Options on Kroger (NYSE:KR)

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) saw unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Stock investors purchased 44,796 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 217% compared to the average volume of 14,113 call options.

Kroger News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Kroger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kroger reported second-quarter adjusted EPS of $1.09, above the approximately $1.05 analyst consensus and up from $1.04 a year earlier. Operating profit increased to $971 million, while adjusted eCommerce sales grew 20% and Kroger Precision Marketing profit rose 24%. Kroger Reports Second Quarter 2026 Results and Updates Guidance for 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Management reaffirmed fiscal 2026 adjusted EPS guidance of $5.10–$5.30, signaling confidence that cost savings, pharmacy and fuel performance, eCommerce and margin management can offset sluggish sales. Kroger also repurchased $1 billion of stock during the quarter. Kroger gains as profit outlook holds despite softer sales guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually heavy call-option activity indicated that some traders were positioning for additional upside following the earnings release.
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue rose 2% year over year to $34.62 billion but was slightly below estimates. Identical sales excluding fuel increased only 0.2%, reflecting cautious consumer spending and the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act on pharmacy revenue. Kroger Reports Second Quarter 2026 Results and Updates Guidance for 2026
• Negative Sentiment: Kroger cut its fiscal-year identical-sales outlook excluding fuel to 0.2%–0.8%, down from 1%–2%. Executives cited inflation, intense grocery competition and strained household budgets, including elevated gasoline costs and reduced government food assistance. Kroger Cuts Sales View Due to Macro Challenges
• Negative Sentiment: A cyclospora outbreak reduced fresh-produce shopping during the quarter, while reports that Boar’s Head meats are disappearing from some stores could create additional deli-sales and customer-retention concerns. Cyclospora outbreak hammers Kroger sales as shoppers avoided produce

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $68.00 target price on Kroger in a research note on Wednesday. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating on shares of Kroger in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, June 1st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $78.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.31.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kroger in the first quarter worth about $27,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Kroger during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kroger in the first quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. bought a new stake in Kroger in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KR opened at $58.50 on Friday. Kroger has a 12 month low of $54.15 and a 12 month high of $76.58. The business has a 50-day moving average of $57.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $63.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.43, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.84 billion, a PE ratio of 34.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.41.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, September 11th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $34.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.64 billion. Kroger had a net margin of 0.71% and a return on equity of 44.33%. Kroger’s revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.04 earnings per share. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.300 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Kroger will post 5.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Saturday, August 15th were 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 was Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 91.76%.

Kroger Company Profile

The Kroger Co (NYSE: KR) is one of the largest grocery retailers in the United States. Founded in Cincinnati in 1883 by Bernard Kroger, the company operates supermarkets, multi-department stores, pharmacies, convenience stores and fuel centers across the country.

Kroger sells a broad range of fresh foods, packaged groceries, household products, health and beauty items, prepared foods and general merchandise. Its private-label offerings include Simple Truth, Private Selection and Kroger brands.