Insider Buying: Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO) Director Buys $198,882.45 in Stock

March 20, 2026 by InsiderTrades.com

Key Points

Director Erik Ragatz purchased 33,997 shares at $5.85 on March 18 for $198,882.45, increasing his stake to 476,500 shares (a 7.68% rise), which signals insider confidence in the company.
Grocery Outlet recently missed quarterly EPS ($0.19 vs. $0.21 expected) and slightly missed revenue, triggering analyst downgrades and an average MarketBeat target of $10.68, while multiple class‑action lawsuits raise legal and reputational risks.

Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:GO - Get Free Report) Director Erik Ragatz purchased 33,997 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $5.85 per share, for a total transaction of $198,882.45. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 476,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,787,525. This represents a 7.68% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Grocery Outlet Stock Performance

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Shares of Grocery Outlet stock opened at $5.86 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $575.16 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The business has a 50-day moving average of $8.96 and a 200 day moving average of $11.85. Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. has a 12 month low of $5.66 and a 12 month high of $19.41.

Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 4th. The company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by ($0.02). Grocery Outlet had a positive return on equity of 5.93% and a negative net margin of 4.80%.The business had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.15 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. Grocery Outlet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.450-0.550 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. will post 0.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Grocery Outlet

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Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Grocery Outlet by 5.8% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 122,565 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,713,000 after purchasing an additional 6,736 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Grocery Outlet by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 357,856 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,003,000 after buying an additional 44,214 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of Grocery Outlet by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 16,525 shares of the company's stock valued at $205,000 after buying an additional 803 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Grocery Outlet by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 642,806 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,984,000 after buying an additional 44,427 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Grocery Outlet during the 2nd quarter worth $263,000. 99.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $11.50 price target on shares of Grocery Outlet in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and set a $7.00 target price (down from $18.00) on shares of Grocery Outlet in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Grocery Outlet from $12.00 to $9.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Telsey Advisory Group cut Grocery Outlet from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $15.00 to $9.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Grocery Outlet from $10.50 to $7.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $10.68.

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View Our Latest Stock Report on Grocery Outlet

Trending Headlines about Grocery Outlet

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

Positive Sentiment: Director insider buys: Director Erik D. Ragatz purchased 50,000 shares at about $5.75 on March 19 (and bought additional shares March 18), increasing his stake to 526,500 shares — a roughly 10.5% increase in his position. Insider buying from a senior director signals management confidence and can provide short‑term support for the stock. InsiderTrades: Director Purchases
Neutral Sentiment: Business profile piece: A feature describing Grocery Outlet’s opportunistic sourcing and discount inventory model ran on MSN — useful background for understanding margins and growth drivers but unlikely to move the stock materially on its own. MSN: How Grocery Outlet's food gets onto its shelves
Negative Sentiment: Wave of class‑action / shareholder alerts: Multiple law firms (Pomerantz, Bernstein Liebhard, Levi & Korsinsky, Robbins LLP, Faruqi & Faruqi, Block & Leviton, etc.) have announced or reminded investors of securities‑fraud class actions covering Aug. 5, 2025–Mar. 4, 2026. Allegations focus on disclosures around rapid expansion and related financial impacts. The proliferation of suits increases legal and reputational risk, could raise defense or settlement costs, and typically weighs on the share price until resolved or dismissed. Pomerantz investor alert on GO class action
Negative Sentiment: Analyst / estimate pressure: Zacks Research published a lower FY2028 earnings view (approx. $0.50/ share vs. consensus ~$0.63), and several broker targets/ratings have been cut since the company’s March 4 quarter (missed EPS and slightly light revenue). Downward estimate revisions and “reduce/hold” analyst stances can cap upside until results or guidance improve. (Zacks research note referenced by MarketBeat.)

Grocery Outlet Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.