Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:GO) shares hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $8.91 and last traded at $8.9950, with a volume of 334597 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.25.

Key Stories Impacting Grocery Outlet

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

• Positive Sentiment: Company announced an “Optimization Plan” intended to improve operational execution, boost profitability and increase cash flow — a management response that could limit longer‑term downside if it reduces costs and restores margins. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Top‑line and working capital signals: revenue grew ~10.7% YoY (Q4 $1.22B) and gross profit rose ~11.5% YoY; operating cash flow and cash balances improved year‑over‑year, which can support the business while management executes the optimization plan. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: The quarter included a 53rd week versus the prior year, which complicates year‑over‑year comparisons and management’s reported results. Investors should adjust models for the extra week when comparing growth rates. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Management made the earnings presentation and conference call materials available for review — useful for detail on one‑time items and the optimization plan execution timeline. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 EPS missed consensus: reported $0.19 vs. $0.21 expected; revenue of $1.22B was below estimates — the miss pressured sentiment and trimmed near‑term earnings visibility. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: FY‑2026 guidance was lowered/trimmed vs. Wall Street: EPS guide of $0.45–$0.55 and revenue guide ~$4.6–$4.7B sit well below consensus (~$0.77 EPS / ~$4.8B revenue), increasing the risk of further multiple compression until execution is proven. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Large institutional reductions and some insider selling were reported in recent filings, which can add selling pressure while the company works through the earnings/guidance miss and optimization execution. Read More.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Grocery Outlet from $14.00 to $11.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Grocery Outlet from $12.00 to $9.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $11.00 price target on Grocery Outlet in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut Grocery Outlet from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $16.00 to $10.50 in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their target price on Grocery Outlet from $19.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Grocery Outlet currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $13.64.

Grocery Outlet Stock Down 0.9%

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $9.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $862.65 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -175.80, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 1.30.

Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 4th. The company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.21 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.23 billion. Grocery Outlet had a positive return on equity of 5.86% and a negative net margin of 0.10%.The company’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.15 EPS. Grocery Outlet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.450-0.550 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. will post 0.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Grocery Outlet

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GO. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Grocery Outlet by 32.3% in the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,942 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 719 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in Grocery Outlet by 1.0% during the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 72,087 shares of the company’s stock worth $895,000 after purchasing an additional 739 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in Grocery Outlet by 5.1% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 16,525 shares of the company’s stock valued at $205,000 after purchasing an additional 803 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank increased its position in shares of Grocery Outlet by 3.5% in the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 28,875 shares of the company’s stock valued at $463,000 after buying an additional 967 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Grocery Outlet by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 30,320 shares of the company’s stock worth $487,000 after buying an additional 1,591 shares during the last quarter. 99.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Grocery Outlet Company Profile

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.