Everyone’s obsessing over Warren Buffett’s owning nearly 5% of all U.S. Treasury bills… as if he’s retreated into a bunker lined with cash, waiting out the market like this trade war’s gonna last Trump’s entire second term. Financial news outlets can’t stop painting this picture of Buffett as the man who’s done taking risks, happy to let the clock run out while clipping government-backed coupons in his Omaha office.

But that narrative’s missing something big. Buffett isn’t done with stocks, he’s just doing it his way. Quietly. Selectively. And one of the clearest signs that he’s still paying attention to long-term value is his position in Kroger. The company that’s been a staple in the Midwest for decades is now one of Buffett’s biggest retail plays. Case in point, Berkshire Hathaway owns nearly 8% of Kroger stock. And he didn’t just decide to pile into shares yesterday. This is a strategic move that he’s been building since 2019.

Kroger isn’t flashy. It’s not chasing headlines or rolling out futuristic tech like drone-delivered avocados. But it’s effective. In 2024, Kroger pulled in $147.1 billion in revenue… a 1.8% increase from the year prior when adjusted for pharmacy divestitures, fuel, and calendar quirks. But what’s more impressive than the top line is what’s happening underneath it. Operating profit climbed to $3.8 billion, up 31% year-over-year (which is quietly impressive for a legacy retailer in a notoriously thin-margin business).

What Kroger lacks in sizzle, it makes up for in discipline. After the FTC blocked its $24.6 billion Albertsons acquisition (a move that would’ve reshaped the grocery landscape) Kroger didn’t flinch. The company took the dry powder it had saved for the deal and plowed it into shareholders. In the past year alone, Kroger repurchased 9% of its shares and launched a $5 billion accelerated buyback plan, with another $2.5 billion lined up once that’s complete.

And they haven’t forgotten dividends either. Kroger’s raised its payout 19 years in a row, with the current quarterly dividend at $0.32 per share. That works out to a 1.8% yield, which isn’t gonna get gamblers like you excited, but it’s consistent… and in this market, consistency matters.

Financially, Kroger isn’t trading at some crazy valuation either. The forward P/E sits around 12.9, and even after a nearly 14% run in the past year, I see no reason it will slow down.

There are challenges, of course. The company’s digital segment continues to be a drag, costing an estimated $400–500 million in EBIT. Fuel discounts tied to loyalty programs eat into profits, and the prescription business comes with low margins and high complexity. Oh and Kroger’s trying to build a digital platform that rivals Amazon and Walmart, but at times it feels like they’re spending tech-company money without getting tech-company margins.

Still, Kroger is proving that it doesn’t need to reinvent the wheel to reward shareholders. With improving profitability, aggressive capital returns, and a valuation that still leaves room for upside, it’s a rare case of a traditional retailer quietly outperforming expectations.

And that’s exactly why Buffett is here. He’s not chasing a reinvention story or buying hype. He’s betting on a company with a $44 billion market cap that quietly posted $7.92 billion in EBITDA last year, bought back nearly a tenth of its stock, and raised its dividend for the 19th year in a row. This is a business that, while not attractive, generates dependable cash flow and finds new ways to return it to shareholders… even when its big acquisition plans fall apart. How many companies are this consistent? Not many.

PS: The headlines are full of panic… inflation’s too high, the Fed’s asleep at the wheel, and Trump never fails to kill any market momentum with more tariffs. On the surface, it looks like the market’s barely breathing.

But underneath all that noise?

We’re seeing some of the fastest stock moves in years… especially in the small-cap space, where low float and high tension can trigger a 100% pop before lunch. Some are up 200% in under 24 hours… and nobody on CNBC is talking about them.

Except us.

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Stock.News has positions in Amazon.