Telsey Advisory Group Reduces Earnings Estimates for Kroger

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) – Equities researchers at Telsey Advisory Group dropped their FY2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Kroger in a research report issued on Thursday, February 13th. Telsey Advisory Group analyst J. Feldman now expects that the company will post earnings of $4.45 per share for the year, down from their previous forecast of $4.48. Telsey Advisory Group has a “Outperform” rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. The consensus estimate for Kroger’s current full-year earnings is $4.44 per share. Telsey Advisory Group also issued estimates for Kroger’s Q4 2025 earnings at $1.09 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $1.56 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.00 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.04 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $1.19 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $4.79 EPS.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.01. Kroger had a return on equity of 27.73% and a net margin of 1.85%. The business had revenue of $33.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.95 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Kroger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $54.00 to $73.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Kroger from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Guggenheim upped their price objective on Kroger from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Roth Mkm boosted their target price on Kroger from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $67.19.

Kroger Price Performance

KR opened at $65.20 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $61.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $57.85. Kroger has a 12-month low of $45.88 and a 12-month high of $66.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.25, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.47.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. DoubleLine ETF Adviser LP grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. DoubleLine ETF Adviser LP now owns 37,359 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,285,000 after buying an additional 645 shares during the last quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,038,000. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 1,045.0% in the 4th quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 1,562,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,553,000 after buying an additional 1,426,131 shares during the last quarter. Candlestick Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Kroger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $51,963,000. Finally, Lido Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Kroger by 14.4% in the 4th quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 18,024 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,102,000 after buying an additional 2,274 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kroger

In other news, CFO Todd A. Foley sold 16,932 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total value of $1,040,302.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 53,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,304,366.08. This represents a 23.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Stuart Aitken sold 132,627 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.18, for a total value of $8,379,373.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 217,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,743,103.14. This represents a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 195,448 shares of company stock valued at $12,143,923 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Kroger’s payout ratio is 33.86%.

Kroger announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $7.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 16.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.