Roth Capital Issues Optimistic Estimate for Kroger Earnings

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) – Research analysts at Roth Capital upped their Q3 2026 earnings estimates for shares of Kroger in a report issued on Wednesday, September 17th. Roth Capital analyst W. Kirk now anticipates that the company will post earnings per share of $1.06 for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of $1.05. Roth Capital currently has a “Buy” rating and a $75.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for Kroger’s current full-year earnings is $4.44 per share. Roth Capital also issued estimates for Kroger’s Q4 2026 earnings at $1.23 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $4.83 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $1.61 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $1.15 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $1.18 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $1.36 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $5.31 EPS.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $74.00 price objective (up from $66.00) on shares of Kroger in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $83.00 price objective on shares of Kroger and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Kroger from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 13th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $72.70.

Kroger Stock Performance

Shares of KR stock opened at $65.95 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85. Kroger has a 52 week low of $54.56 and a 52 week high of $74.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.59 billion, a PE ratio of 16.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.59. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $70.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $68.94.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 11th. The company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.04. Kroger had a net margin of 1.86% and a return on equity of 32.62%. The firm had revenue of $33.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.93 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. Kroger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.700-4.800 EPS.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In other news, EVP Yael Cosset sold 71,224 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.49, for a total transaction of $5,234,251.76. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 139,124 shares in the company, valued at $10,224,222.76. The trade was a 33.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Gabriel Arreaga sold 37,960 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.44, for a total transaction of $2,749,822.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 75,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,448,791.92. This trade represents a 33.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 198,948 shares of company stock valued at $14,422,926. Insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Kroger during the first quarter worth about $25,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. grew its position in Kroger by 6,840.0% during the second quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 347 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 342 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new position in Kroger during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Rossby Financial LCC acquired a new position in Kroger during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 10,425.0% in 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 in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Kroger

The Kroger Co operates as a food and drug retailer in the United States. The company operates combination food and drug stores, multi-department stores, marketplace stores, and price impact warehouses. Its combination food and drug stores offer natural food and organic sections, pharmacies, general merchandise, pet centers, fresh seafood, and organic produce; and multi-department stores provide apparel, home fashion and furnishings, outdoor living, electronics, automotive products, and toys.