The Kroger Co. $KR Shares Acquired by Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 31.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 69,482 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 16,552 shares during the quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in Kroger were worth $4,684,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Kroger by 6,840.0% in the 2nd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 347 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new position in Kroger in the second quarter worth $28,000. Rossby Financial LCC acquired a new position in Kroger in the second quarter worth $29,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC increased its stake in Kroger by 10,425.0% during the second quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 421 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 417 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kroger by 87.8% during the second quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 445 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KR has been the subject of several research reports. Argus set a $85.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 target price (down from $82.00) on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, December 1st. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $70.00 target price (down from $74.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, December 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Kroger in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.19.

Key Stories Impacting Kroger

Here are the key news stories impacting Kroger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kroger completed the sale of Vitacost to iHerb to streamline operations, preserve its 2025 guidance, and refocus on core grocery and margin improvement — management portrays the deal as part of a strategic review to simplify the business. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: iHerb says the Vitacost acquisition strengthens its U.S. business in vitamins/minerals/supplements — the buyer’s strategic rationale increases the likelihood of a smooth transition and reduces execution risk for Kroger. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and options traders showed bullish signals: Deutsche Bank upgraded KR from Hold to Buy with a $75 target, and there was unusually high call?option volume — both indicate upside conviction among some institutional and derivatives traders. Read More. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Consumer?facing initiatives continue: Kroger launched a “Verified Savings” program and targeted discounts for SNAP/WIC/Medicaid shoppers and debuted checkout features highlighting customer savings — moves that may help traffic, loyalty and comps in a tight consumer spending environment. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Store-level experiments: a proposed State Street remodel includes an in?store Dunkin’ — incremental non?grocery partnerships can boost traffic but are unlikely to move near?term earnings materially. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry context: outlets rank grocery chains (where Kroger appears) and competitor valuation stories (e.g., Albertsons) are circulating — useful for relative valuation but not an immediate company catalyst. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Kroger will close about 60 stores as part of a post?merger refocus on stronger markets — the planned closures signal ongoing restructuring and cost but raise near?term execution and severance costs and reduce store count. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Operational/PR hit: a Kroger store in Orion Township remained closed after inspectors found rodent evidence — localized food?safety incidents can pressure traffic and require remediation spend and invite short?term negative headlines. Read More.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KR opened at $59.52 on Friday. The Kroger Co. has a 12-month low of $58.12 and a 12-month high of $74.90. The company has a market cap of $37.66 billion, a PE ratio of 55.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.61. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $63.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $67.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.28.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, December 4th. The company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.02. Kroger had a return on equity of 38.06% and a net margin of 0.54%.The firm had revenue of $33.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.27 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.98 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Kroger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.750-4.800 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current year.

About Kroger

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.