Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO) Rating Lowered to “Hold” at Craig Hallum

Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO) was downgraded by Craig Hallum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts also recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Grocery Outlet in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Bank of America cut their price target on Grocery Outlet from $19.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Grocery Outlet from $11.00 to $7.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $11.00 price objective on shares of Grocery Outlet in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $11.50 target price on shares of Grocery Outlet in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $10.68.

Grocery Outlet Trading Up 3.6%

GO opened at $6.57 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $644.85 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.50. The business’s 50 day moving average is $9.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Grocery Outlet has a 52 week low of $6.20 and a 52 week high of $19.41.

Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 4th. The company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by ($0.02). Grocery Outlet had a negative net margin of 4.80% and a positive return on equity of 5.93%. The business had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.15 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Grocery Outlet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.450-0.550 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Grocery Outlet will post 0.63 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Grocery Outlet

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Grocery Outlet by 54.0% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 15,763,945 shares of the company’s stock valued at $159,216,000 after acquiring an additional 5,528,722 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Grocery Outlet by 3,558.0% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,825,407 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,298,000 after purchasing an additional 1,775,505 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG grew its position in shares of Grocery Outlet by 87.6% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 2,726,299 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,536,000 after purchasing an additional 1,272,859 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its stake in shares of Grocery Outlet by 219.7% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,462,633 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,475,000 after purchasing an additional 1,005,126 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Grocery Outlet by 106.5% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,914,410 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,336,000 after purchasing an additional 987,367 shares during the last quarter. 99.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Grocery Outlet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Grocery Outlet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Grocery Outlet retained Gordon Brothers to market retail leasehold opportunities as part of its store-portfolio optimization, which could recover value from closed or underperforming locations. Gordon Brothers Retained by Grocery Outlet
• Neutral Sentiment: Management set FY2026 EPS guidance (about $0.45–$0.55), giving a baseline for expectations but signaling a recovery path that will depend on fixing value perception and comp trends. Q4 2025 earnings call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 results missed expectations: EPS of $0.19 vs. $0.21 estimate, revenue slightly below estimates, comps weakened. Management reported a large operating loss driven by $113.8M long‑lived asset impairment, $149.0M goodwill impairment and $45.9M of restructuring charges — contributing to a FY2025 net loss (reported coverage highlights these write‑downs). Investor Alert / Impairment Details
• Negative Sentiment: Company announced plans to close 36 stores after a $224.9M FY2025 net loss — a sign management is accelerating portfolio cuts but also acknowledging execution and merchandising issues that hurt traffic and margins. Grocery Outlet To Close 36 Stores
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple brokerages cut ratings and price targets (Jefferies, Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo, DA Davidson, Telsey, Craig Hallum), citing the downbeat quarter, weaker comps and the need to restore value perception — analyst downgrades amplify selling pressure. Analysts Slash Forecasts After Q4
• Negative Sentiment: Shareholder‑side investigations have been announced (multiple firms), alleging possible misstatements around financials and operations — legal risk and potential disclosures add uncertainty. Ademi LLP Investigation
• Negative Sentiment: Market commentary and analysis point to weakening customer perception of value, increased promotional activity and competitive pressure — all factors that suggest the recovery could be prolonged. Why Grocery Outlet Stock Crashed Today

About Grocery Outlet

Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: GO) is a specialty discount retailer that offers consumers deeply discounted groceries by purchasing excess inventory, closeouts, and overstocks from manufacturers and distributors. Headquartered in Emeryville, California, the company operates two primary banners—Grocery Outlet and Fresh2Go—with a combined footprint of more than 400 stores. Its product assortment spans fresh produce, meat, dairy, bakery items, household staples, natural and organic offerings, and select specialty products, all sold at significant markdowns compared to conventional supermarkets.

The company’s unique buying model enables it to source inventory through opportunistic purchases of surplus freight, discontinued items, and closeout deals, which it then passes on as savings to its customers.