Should I Buy KR? KR 2026 Analysis

Should You Buy Kroger Co (KR) Today? Analysis, Price Targets, and 2026 Outlook.

Conclusion

Hold

Latest Price

67.500

1 Day change

1.24%

52 Week Range

74.900

Analysis Updated At

2026/02/05

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Not a good buy right now for an impatient entry: the stock is technically overbought (RSI~~80.8) and sitting near resistance (~~67.9), which skews near-term risk/reward to the downside.
No Intellectia proprietary buy signals today (AI Stock Picker / SwingMax), so there’s no high-conviction timing edge supporting an immediate chase.
Options positioning is modestly bullish (put/call < 1), but elevated IV percentile suggests options are pricing in more uncertainty—consistent with a less favorable “buy now” setup.
Fundamentals show very weak latest-quarter bottom-line (net income/EPS collapse), which keeps Wall Street largely neutral despite a few bullish outliers.
Best stance here: HOLD / do not initiate a new position pre-market at ~~67; wait for a pullback closer to support (~~63.9) if you must enter.

Technical Analysis

Trend/momentum: MACD histogram is positive and expanding (bullish momentum), but short-term conditions look stretched.
Overbought: RSI(6) ~80.76 signals overbought—often followed by consolidation or mean reversion.
Moving averages: Converging MAs suggest the trend is not cleanly accelerating; more “grind higher” than breakout.
Key levels: Pivot ~63.93 (important support/mean-reversion area). Resistance: R1 ~66.39 already cleared; next resistance R2 ~67.91 (price is approaching this zone pre-market).
Quant-style forward bias (pattern analogs): Slightly negative near-term expectations (next week ~-1.32% baseline), reinforcing that upside may be limited immediately after this run-up.
Intellectia Proprietary Trading Signals:
- AI Stock Picker: No signal on given stock today.
- SwingMax: No signal on given stock today.

Options Data

Bullish

Open Interest Put-Call Ratio

Bullish

Option Volume Put-Call Ratio

Sentiment: Put/call ratios below 1.0 (OI 0.77; volume 0.74) indicate a bullish to moderately bullish options skew.
Volatility: IV 30d ~32.07 vs historical vol ~25.52 and IV percentile ~89.64 -> options are relatively expensive and imply elevated near-term uncertainty.
Activity: Today’s options volume (~8,692) is ~60% of the 30-day average, so sentiment is constructive but not showing a major “rush” into contracts.

Technical Summary

Sell

Buy

Positive Catalysts

- Defensive grocery profile can hold up in a risk-off tape (pre-market S&P -0.6% while KR is green).
- Dividend support: Quarterly dividend declared at $0.35/share (payable March 1, 2026), reinforcing shareholder-return narrative.
- News tone mildly positive: “undervalued retail stocks” commentary and incremental product launches/promotions.
- Potential macro tailwind cited by Deutsche Bank: possible sizable stimulus in 1H 2026 supporting consumer demand.

Neutral/Negative Catalysts

- Technical setup is stretched: RSI overbought and price pressing into resistance (~67.9), which commonly caps immediate upside.
- Latest reported quarter shows severe bottom-line deterioration (net income and EPS deeply negative YoY), which can overhang sentiment into the next earnings cycle.
- Industry/competitive pressure: multiple analysts flagged slowing ID sales, higher price investments, and “negative sentiment on grocery.”
- Earnings catalyst ahead: QJAN 2026 earnings on 2026-03-06 (pre-market) can keep implied volatility elevated and limit clean upside drift.

Financial Performance

Latest quarter: 2026/Q3.
Revenue: $33.859B, +0.67% YoY (low growth; stable but not accelerating).
Profitability: Net income -$1.321B (-315.50% YoY) and EPS -2.02 (-340.48% YoY) indicate a major earnings hit versus last year.
Margin: Gross margin 21.03%, +2.09% YoY (some operational improvement, but not enough to offset the bottom-line decline).
Takeaway: Top-line is steady, but the magnitude of earnings decline is the key fundamental red flag right now.

Growth

Profitability

Efficiency

Analyst Ratings and Price Target Trends

Recent trend: Predominantly price-target cuts and a cluster of Neutral/Equal Weight stances after the latest results (many targets pulled down into the $68–$72 range).
Notable bullish view: Deutsche Bank resumed with Buy and a $75 target (more optimistic on forward tailwinds/stimulus).
Mixed-positive but cautious: Evercore/Telsey remain Outperform with higher targets (upper $70s to $80), while Barclays/Citi/JPM/UBS/Morgan Stanley lean Neutral/Equal Weight with reduced targets.
Wall Street pros vs cons:
- Pros: Defensive category, dividend, potential macro tailwinds, some confidence in longer-term strategic shifts.
- Cons: Near-term growth skepticism (slowing sales momentum, price investment), persistent “grocery sentiment” headwinds, and the latest quarter’s sharp earnings deterioration.
Influential/political trading: No recent congress trading data available; hedge funds and insiders are reported Neutral with no significant recent trend.

15 Analyst Rating

Wall Street analysts forecast KR stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for KR is 75 USD with a low forecast of 68 USD and a high forecast of 85 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.

9 Buy

6 Hold

0 Sell

Moderate Buy

Current: 66.670

Low

Averages

High

Current: 66.670

Low

Averages

High

Deutsche Bank

NULL -> Buy

resume

$75

AI Analysis

2026-01-08

Reason

Deutsche Bank

Price Target

$75

AI Analysis

2026-01-08

resume

NULL -> Buy

Reason

Deutsche Bank resumed coverage of Kroger with a Buy rating and $75 price target. The firm resumed coverage of the broadlines and food retailers. Deutsche expects 2026 to be another "mixed year," characterized by food disinflation, reduced government benefits, and consumers' value focus extending into the new year. The analyst says that while defensive sectors such as food retail could face a challenging setup, "there are tailwinds on the horizon," including a sizable stimulus in the first half of 2026.

Barclays

Equal Weight

downgrade

$75 -> $68

2026-01-08

Reason

Barclays

Price Target

$75 -> $68

2026-01-08

downgrade

Equal Weight

Reason

Barclays lowered the firm's price target on Kroger to $68 from $75 and keeps an Equal Weight rating on the shares. The firm is positive on the broadlines, hardlines and food retail sector entering 2026. It sees improvements in discretionary goods demand with potential for a "modest bump" from consumer tax savings ahead and interest rate cuts.

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KR Should I Buy

KR Should I Buy

Should You Buy Kroger Co (KR) Today? Analysis, Price Targets, and 2026 Outlook.

Technical Analysis

Options Data

Technical Summary

Positive Catalysts

Neutral/Negative Catalysts

Financial Performance

Growth

Profitability

Efficiency

Analyst Ratings and Price Target Trends

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