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Kroger Company (KR) has submitted its Form 10-K filing for the fiscal year ended February 1, 2025.
The filing includes financial statements for the year, showing total sales of $147.123 billion, a slight decrease from $150.039 billion in the previous year. This decrease is attributed to a reduction in supermarket fuel sales and the sale of Kroger Specialty Pharmacy.
Kroger reported an operating profit of $3.849 billion for the year, representing a 24.3% increase from $3.096 billion in the previous year. The increase in operating profit was primarily due to decreased operating, general, and administrative expenses as a percentage of sales.
Net earnings attributable to Kroger Company were $2.665 billion, up from $2.164 billion in the previous year. The company achieved net earnings per diluted common share of $3.67, a 24% increase compared to $2.96 in the previous year.
The company returned $5.1 billion to shareholders through share repurchases and dividend payments during the year. This included the initial delivery of approximately 65.6 million shares repurchased as part of a $5.0 billion accelerated share repurchase program.
Kroger's identical sales, excluding fuel, increased by 1.5% in 2024 compared to the previous year. The increase was primarily driven by growth in total and loyal households, increased Health and Wellness sales, and digital sales.
The company completed the sale of its Kroger Specialty Pharmacy business to Elevance Health for $464 million. This sale resulted in a gain of $79 million, $91 million net of tax.
Kroger issued $10.5 billion of senior notes to fund a proposed merger with Albertsons, which was later terminated. Following the termination, $4.7 billion of the senior notes were redeemed, and the funds were used to support the company's share repurchase program.
The company's long-term debt, including obligations under finance leases, increased to $17.9 billion as of year-end 2024, compared to $12.028 billion at the end of the previous year.
Kroger continues to focus on its strategic pillars: Fresh, Our Brands, Data & Personalization, and Seamless, to drive growth and enhance customer loyalty.
The company plans to continue investing in its business through high-return opportunities, maintain its investment-grade debt rating, and grow its dividend over time.
Kroger's effective income tax rate for the year was 20.0%, down from 23.5% in the previous year, due to a tax benefit from recognizing deferred tax assets related to the sale of Kroger Specialty Pharmacy.
This content was summarized by generative artificial intelligence using public filings retrieved from SEC.gov. The original data was derived from the Kroger Company annual 10-K report dated April 1, 2025. To report an error, please email earnings@qz.com.