134,860 Shares in The Kroger Co. $KR Bought by Aquatic Capital Management LLC

Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 134,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,091,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Kroger by 22.6% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,747,354 shares of the company’s stock worth $117,772,000 after purchasing an additional 322,027 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 17.6% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 227,312 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,323,000 after purchasing an additional 34,096 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 30.6% in the 3rd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 420,403 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,339,000 after purchasing an additional 98,444 shares during the last quarter. SummitTX Capital L.P. boosted its position in shares of Kroger by 386.6% in the 3rd quarter. SummitTX Capital L.P. now owns 34,170 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,303,000 after purchasing an additional 27,148 shares during the period. Finally, Credit Agricole S A purchased a new position in Kroger during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,896,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on KR. Citigroup lifted their price target on Kroger from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective (down from $74.00) on shares of Kroger in a report on Friday, December 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Kroger from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their target price for the company from $70.00 to $68.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Telsey Advisory Group upped their price target on shares of Kroger from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $78.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.56.

Key Kroger News

Here are the key news stories impacting Kroger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kroger expanded access to Eli Lilly’s Zepbound® KwikPen at participating Kroger pharmacies, which can drive pharmacy revenue, strengthen Kroger’s healthcare positioning and attract higher-margin prescription sales (and the company will honor manufacturer savings programs for eligible patients). Kroger Brings Zepbound® KwikPen to Retail Pharmacy
• Positive Sentiment: Media coverage noting the pharmacy rollout and investor reaction contributed to shares edging up; the Benzinga note flags near-term investor interest tied to the Zepbound availability. Kroger Shares Rise As Pharmacies Add Eli Lilly’s Zepbound KwikPen
• Positive Sentiment: KR’s technical/momentum profile improved after a Relative Strength rating lift to 82, which can attract momentum and technical-focused buyers. Kroger Stock Gets Relative Strength Rating Lift To 82
• Positive Sentiment: Kroger’s board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, supporting income investors and signaling confidence in cash flow (ex-dividend in May; paid June 1). Dividend growth history may underpin valuation support. Kroger’s Board of Directors Declares Quarterly Dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst optimism and post-earnings positioning continued to lift sentiment—notes point to EPS beats, FY2026 guidance and several price-target increases that have helped push shares higher after the March 5 results. Kroger shares rise 3.9% as post-earnings optimism and price-target hikes build
• Neutral Sentiment: Kroger hit an all-time intraday high recently, reflecting momentum; while bullish, this can also invite short-term profit-taking. Kroger stock reaches all-time high at 74.92 USD
• Negative Sentiment: Kroger plans to close about 50 Little Clinics — a cost-cutting/reshaping move that may reduce near-term healthcare footprint and could signal lower near-term revenue from those locations. Investors may view this as a strategic tradeoff. Kroger plans to shutter 50 Little Clinics
• Negative Sentiment: Geopolitical risks from the Iran war (Strait of Hormuz disruptions) could push up supply-chain costs and retail prices, pressuring margins for grocers including Kroger if input costs rise or supply chains tighten. This is an industry-level headwind with uncertain timing. How the Iran war could start to impact U.S. retail prices
• Negative Sentiment: A recent Seeking Alpha piece argued Kroger may be fairly valued after a rally and flagged a downgrade — a reminder some analysts see less upside after the run-up, which can cap near-term gains. Kroger: Strong E-commerce Growth, But Fairly Valued After Rally (Downgrade)

Kroger Stock Up 0.9%

KR opened at $75.65 on Monday. The Kroger Co. has a 52 week low of $58.60 and a 52 week high of $76.58. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $66.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $65.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66. The company has a market cap of $47.87 billion, a PE ratio of 49.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.62.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The company reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.08. Kroger had a return on equity of 41.08% and a net margin of 0.69%.The company had revenue of $34.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.10 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.14 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. Kroger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.300 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 EPS 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 paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. Kroger’s payout ratio is currently 91.50%.

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.