“The stock split will increase the accessibility of our shares and liquidity in the trading of our shares,” said Rodney McMullen, Kroger’s chairman and chief executive officer, in a written statement. “We are especially excited that the stock split will make Kroger’s common shares more accessible to our associates.”
It’s the first Kroger stock split since 1999 and the fifth in company history, according to WCPO. Shareholders of record on July 6 will receive a dividend of one new share for every share they own on July 13. The split will increase to 962 million the number of shares outstanding.
Dividends and share buybacks are popular with investors because they tend to boost stock prices and they’re a way for the company to share profits with shareholders.
Kroger’s 21 cent per share dividend will be paid after the stock split, giving shareholders of record on Aug. 14 a total of 10.5 cents per share. The dividend will be paid on Sept. 1, according to the WCPO report.
In other Kroger news, the company is now testing its online ordering service at a second Cincinnati-area store.