It wasn't so long ago that investors couldn't buy enough of Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR): Between 2013 and 2015, the stock rose an astonishing 217%. Yet since January 2016, Kroger's shares have lost 50% of their value.
Over the last 18 months, Kroger's comparable quarterly sales, excluding fuel sales, have shifted from healthy growth in the mid-single digits to a complete standstill. In the final quarter of 2016, the company saw its 13-year streak of comparable sales growth snap, as comps declined for the first time in 53 quarters.
Kroger is cuing up a comps revival, but for now, progress is wan. Management projects just a slight expansion in this metric of 0.5% to 1% for the second half of the current fiscal year. The culprit, of course, is fierce competition among grocers for customers. And it will only intensify: 2018 promises to ring in a battle royale within the grocery industry.
Source: Fool.com