Kroger Stock Is Sliding Monday: What's Going On?

Kroger Company KR shares are trading lower Monday after the company announced the resignation of CEO Rodney McMullen.

What Happened: McMullen resigned from Kroger following an investigation of personal conduct by the board. Kroger said it was made aware of a certain personal conduct on Feb. 21, which was immediately investigated. The company’s board found that McMullen’s conduct was inconsistent with Kroger’s policy on business ethics.

Kroger has appointed Ronald Sargent as chairman and interim CEO, effective immediately. Mark Sutton will serve as Kroger’s lead independent director, effective immediately. Kroger’s board has formed a search committee and engaged an outside firm to search for its next chief executive.

“As interim CEO, I am committed to working alongside our proven and experienced management team and dedicated associates to ensure Kroger continues providing exceptional value for our customers,” Sargent said.

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Kroger expects full-year identical sales without fuel to be at the high end of its guidance range. The company also expects full-year adjusted earnings per share to be slightly above the high end of its guidance range.

Kroger is due to report fourth-quarter financial results before the market opens on Thursday. Analysts currently expect the company to report earnings of $1.11 per share and revenue of $34.51 billion, according to estimates from Benzinga Pro.

KR Price Action: Kroger shares were down 3.86% at $62.31 at the time of publication Monday, according to Benzinga Pro.

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