At a glance
Grocery Outlet Holding Corp is worth $1.25B. Revenue grew 7.3% to $4.69B in fiscal 2025, at a loss; over 5 years it has grown 8.4% a year. It pays no dividend; it spent $90.7M buying back its shares over FY2021–FY2025. The stock returned −14.0% over the past year with dividends reinvested and −10.5% a year over five years, against +11.5% and +11.7% for the S&P 500. At its worst it fell 13.1% in the 2020 crash (S&P 500: 33.7%) and 28.8% in the 2022 bear market (S&P 500: 24.5%).
The business in plain English
Grocery Outlet is a discount grocery chain that sells name-brand groceries, fresh produce, meat, beer and wine, and household goods. Its buyers purchase surplus stock from big consumer brands, such as goods from canceled orders, extra production runs, packaging changes or items near their sell-by dates. The company says its "WOW!" deals are generally 40% to 70% below conventional retailers' prices, and that a typical basket costs about 40% less than at conventional grocers and about 20% less than at discount retailers. It also stocks everyday staples and, as of January 3, 2026, about 485 store-brand (private-label) items.
Most stores are run by independent operators (IOs), small business owners who invest their own money, hire their own staff and order and stock their shelves. Grocery Outlet buys and ships the goods, and each IO generally splits the store's gross profit (sales minus the cost of goods) 50-50 with it. As of January 3, 2026, Grocery Outlet had 570 stores, from California, Washington and Oregon to states such as Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Georgia. It ran 41 stores itself, including 39 from its April 2024 purchase of United Grocery Outlet.
In fiscal 2025, which ended January 3, 2026, revenue rose 7.3% to about $4.69 billion. Non-perishable goods made up 62.3% of sales and perishable (fresh) goods 37.7%.
Price history
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GO -14.0% over the year to Oct 28, 2026, total return with dividends reinvested.
How it makes money
By product or service
| Non-Perishable | $2.92B | 62.3% |
| Perishable | $1.77B | 37.7% |
Latest results
- In Q2 FY2026 (ended Jul 4, 2026), revenue was $1.19B, up 1.1% from a year earlier, and net income was $5.6M (+13.4%).
- For fiscal 2025, revenue was $4.69B (+7.3% year over year; +8.4% a year from FY2020 to FY2025) with a -4.8% net margin.
Financial health check
| Revenue growth a year (FY2020–FY2025) | +8.4% good |
|---|---|
| Operating margin | -4.7% weak |
| Free cash flow margin | 0.5% watch |
| Return on equity (FY2025) | -22.9% weak |
| Return on assets (FY2025) | -7.3% weak |
| Net cash (cash minus debt) | $-431.4M weak |
| Fiscal year | Revenue | Net income | Free cash flow |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $3.13B | $106.7M | $56.3M |
| FY2021 | $3.08B | $62.3M | $42.2M |
| FY2022 | $3.58B | $65.1M | $55.0M |
| FY2023 | $3.97B | $79.4M | $134.5M |
| FY2024 | $4.37B | $39.5M | $-74.6M |
| FY2025 | $4.69B | $-224.9M | $23.8M |
Valuation snapshot
| Market value | $1.25B |
|---|---|
| P/E ratio | — |
| Dividend yield | None |
Rank among 1514 US companies
Market value at each year end
Grocery Outlet Holding’s market value went from $2.88B at the end of 2019 to $1.25B on Oct 28, 2026, down 57%; since the end of 2025 it is up 26%.
Show as a table
| Year end | Market value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 28, 2026 | $1.25B | +25.7% |
| 2025 | $991.2M | -34.6% |
| 2024 | $1.52B | -43.3% |
| 2023 | $2.68B | -5.7% |
| 2022 | $2.84B | +4.6% |
| 2021 | $2.72B | -26.5% |
| 2020 | $3.70B | +28.1% |
| 2019 | $2.88B |
Price behavior
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GO price data to Oct 28, 2026 | +24.5% | -14.0% | -22.5% | -10.5% | — |
Show as a table
| Year | Price data |
|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +24.5% |
| 2025 | -35.3% |
| 2024 | -42.1% |
| 2023 | -7.6% |
| 2022 | +3.2% |
| 2021 | -27.9% |
| 2020 | +21.0% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Before this security existed |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Lost 1.7% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 13.1%, back to its old high 0.2 months after the low |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Gained 15.4% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 28.8%, not recovered by the end of the data |
Insider activity
Form 4 filings from 2025-10-29 to 2026-10-29 (25 read): 12 open-market purchases ($4.9M) and 4 sales ($72K), 1 of them under pre-arranged 10b5-1 trading plans.
| Date | Insider | Type | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 19, 2026 | Jason J. N. Potter President and CEO, Director | buy | $1.7M |
| Mar 27, 2026 | Erik D. Ragatz Director | buy | $883K |
| Mar 23, 2026 | Jason J. N. Potter President and CEO, Director | buy | $700K |
| Mar 16, 2026 | Erik D. Ragatz Director | buy | $609K |
| Mar 19, 2026 | Erik D. Ragatz Director | buy | $288K |
Who owns it
Large shareholders (13G filings)
| T. Rowe Price Investment Management, Inc. | 19% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| BlackRock, Inc. | 14.4% | Jun 30, 2025 |
| Pertento Partners LLP | 6.2% | Oct 13, 2026 |
| Vanguard Portfolio Management | 6.18% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| J. Goldman & Co LP | 6.11% | Jun 30, 2026 |
| FPR PARTNERS LLC | 1.6% | May 31, 2025 |
ETFs with the most weight in GO
| PSCC Invesco S&P SmallCap Consumer Staples ETF | 3.52% |
| FXG First Trust Consumer Staples AlphaDEX Fund | 2.57% |
| XRT SPDR S&P Retail ETF | 1.57% |
| RZV Invesco S&P SmallCap 600® Pure Value ETF | 0.56% |
| FYT First Trust Small Cap Value AlphaDEX Fund | 0.4% |
| IJS iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Value ETF | 0.24% |
| SLYV SPDR S&P 600 Small Cap Value ETF | 0.23% |
| QSML WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap Quality Growth Fund | 0.21% |
What could go wrong
- Bargain supply depends on others' surplus. Grocery Outlet's deals rely on brands having surplus stock from canceled orders, extra production or packaging changes. The company says this supply at attractive prices is generally outside its control.
- Heavy reliance on independent store operators. Most stores are run by independent operators. Their agreements can end on short notice, some owe the company money on loans, and the independent-contractor model itself could face legal challenges.
- Restructuring may cost more or help less. From late fiscal 2024, Grocery Outlet canceled leases for unopened stores and closed weak ones. Fiscal 2025 ended with a $224.9 million net loss, and the plan's benefits may come late or not at all.
- Technology problems have already disrupted operations. System upgrades in August 2023 caused significant disruptions to ordering, inventory planning and payment processing for the company and its operators, lasting into fiscal 2025. Further tech or distribution problems could hurt results.
- Shift to company-run new stores. The company plans to run certain stores opening in fiscal 2026 itself, not through independent operators. That breaks with its usual model, in which operators, not the company, employ store workers.
- Substantial debt with lender restrictions. Total debt was $505.6 million against $74.2 million in cash and investments as of July 4, 2026. Loan covenants (rules set by lenders) limit its options, and breaking them could make debt due early.
Recent events
- Quarterly results released
- Executive or board change; Investor presentation or announcement
- Shareholder vote results
- Quarterly results released
- Executive or board change; Investor presentation or announcement
- Quarterly results released; Restructuring or exit costs
- Executive or board change
- Investor presentation or announcement
- Quarterly results released
For income and retirement investors
Grocery Outlet does not pay a regular dividend, so it offers no income for investors who rely on dividends. It paid none in fiscal 2024 or 2025, and payments from fiscal 2021 to 2025 totaled only about $301,000. Any return has to come from the share price. The company spent $90.7 million on buybacks (repurchases of its own shares) over those years, $81.4 million of it in fiscal 2024, yet the share count rose 3.2% from November 2021 to August 2026.
The stock has swung sharply. In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 13.1% at worst but recovered within days. During the 2022 market slump it gained 15.4% while the broad market fell, though it dropped 28.8% from a July 2022 high and had not regained that level by October 28, 2026. Its deepest fall since listing was 87.6%. It was not public during the 2008 crisis. A single stock carries more risk than a diversified fund.
Questions investors ask
How does Grocery Outlet make money?
Grocery Outlet makes money by buying surplus name-brand groceries at steep discounts and reselling them cheaply in its stores. Its buyers pick up goods from canceled orders, extra production, packaging changes and items near their sell-by dates. Most stores are run by independent operators who hire their own staff, and each operator generally splits the store's gross profit 50-50 with the company. Revenue was about $4.69 billion in fiscal 2025, which ended January 3, 2026.
Does Grocery Outlet pay a dividend?
No. Grocery Outlet does not pay a regular dividend. It paid no dividends in fiscal 2024 or fiscal 2025, and payments from fiscal 2021 through 2025 totaled only about $301,000. It returned cash through buybacks instead, spending about $90.7 million over those five years, including $81.4 million in fiscal 2024 and nothing in fiscal 2025. Even so, the share count rose 3.2% between November 2021 and August 2026. For income investors, any return depends entirely on the share price.
Is Grocery Outlet profitable?
Not in its latest full year. In fiscal 2025, which ended January 3, 2026, Grocery Outlet posted a net loss of $224.9 million, or $2.30 per diluted share, on revenue of $4.69 billion. A year earlier it earned $39.5 million. Its operating margin was negative 4.7%, meaning it lost about 4.7 cents per dollar of sales before interest and taxes. In the quarter ended July 4, 2026, it earned $5.6 million, up 13.4% from a year earlier.
How has Grocery Outlet stock performed?
Poorly over the long run. As of October 28, 2026, the shares were down 14% over one year and 42% in total over five years. They fell 42.1% in calendar 2024 and 35.3% in 2025, then rose 24.5% in 2026 through October 28. At the worst point, the shares were 87.6% below their highest price. Volatility, a measure of how widely the price swings, was 56.6% over the year to October 28, 2026.
Are Grocery Outlet insiders buying the stock?
Yes. Insider filings for October 29, 2025, to October 29, 2026, include 12 purchases worth about $4.88 million and 4 sales worth about $72,000. Jason J. N. Potter, president and CEO at the time, bought about $1.69 million of stock on March 19, 2026, and $700,100 more on March 23. Director Erik D. Ragatz made several purchases in March 2026, the largest worth $882,500. Insider buying can signal confidence, but it does not guarantee better results for the business or the stock.