Kroger vs Walmart (KR vs WMT)
Side by side from their SEC filings: revenue, margins, growth, returns and valuation, plus short interest, insider activity and institutional ownership.
Walmart is the larger company by revenue ($706.4B vs $147.6B) and market value ($853.1B vs $34.5B). Walmart has grown revenue faster over the last 4 fiscal years (+24.4% cumulative vs +7.1%). Walmart runs the higher operating margin (4.2% vs 1.3%). Kroger trades at the lower trailing P/E (32.6x vs 38.8x).
About Kroger
Kroger Co operates as a retail company primarily engaged in grocery store operations. It offers a range of food products, pharmacy services, and general merchandise to consumers. The company serves customers through its network of supermarkets and related retail outlets.
About Walmart
Walmart Inc. is a global retailer operating retail stores and eCommerce platforms in 19 countries. It serves approximately 280 million customers weekly through over 10,900 stores and various online websites and mobile applications. The company offers a wide range of products including groceries, general merchandise, health and wellness items, and provides services such as advertising, financial products, and supply chain solutions.
Head to head (KR FY2025 vs WMT FY2026)
| Metric | KRFY2025 | WMTFY2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $147.64B | $706.41B |
| Revenue growth (YoY) | 0.4% | 4.7% |
| Gross margin | — | 24.2% |
| Operating margin | 1.3% | 4.2% |
| Net margin | 0.7% | 3.1% |
| Net income | $1.02B | $21.89B |
| Diluted EPS | $1.54 | $2.73 |
| FCF margin | 2.3% | 2.1% |
| ROE | 17.1% | 20.7% |
| Long-term debt / equity | 2.44× | 0.33× |
| Market cap | $34.50B | $853.11B |
| P/E | 32.6× | 38.8× |
Fundamentals are from each company’s SEC filings (KR FY2025, WMT FY2026). ROE is net income over fiscal-year-end equity; long-term debt / equity counts non-current term debt only. P/E and market cap are derived from stored market prices, last retrieved on a rolling basis and typically within the past week.
Five-year trend (as reported)
| KR by fiscal year | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $137.89B | $148.26B | $150.04B | $147.12B | $147.64B |
| Net income | $1.66B | $2.24B | $2.16B | $2.67B | $1.02B |
| Operating margin | 2.5% | 2.8% | 2.1% | 2.6% | 1.3% |
| WMT by fiscal year | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 | FY2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $567.76B | $605.88B | $642.64B | $674.54B | $706.41B |
| Net income | $13.67B | $11.68B | $15.51B | $19.44B | $21.89B |
| Operating margin | 4.6% | 3.4% | 4.2% | 4.4% | 4.2% |
Kroger and Walmart use different fiscal calendars (KR's FY2025 ended 2026-01-31, WMT's FY2026 ended 2026-01-31), so their fiscal years are shown separately rather than forced into one timeline.
Peer standing
Where each company ranks among the 113 Consumer Staples companies, on the same scale. Each figure is ranked only against peers that report it. Percentiles describe position in the distribution, not a rating.
| Metric | KR | WMT |
|---|---|---|
| Operating margin | 1.3%34th percentile of 100 | 4.2%48th percentile of 100 |
| Net margin | 0.7%34th percentile of 105 | 3.1%51st percentile of 105 |
| FCF margin | 2.3%42nd percentile of 99 | 2.1%39th percentile of 99 |
| Revenue growth (YoY) | +0.4%37th percentile of 110 | +4.7%61st percentile of 110 |
| ROE | 17.1%73rd percentile of 98 | 20.7%81st percentile of 98 |
| P/E | 32.6×79th percentile of 72 | 38.8×83rd percentile of 72 |
| Long-term debt / equity | 2.44×89th percentile of 74 | 0.33×34th percentile of 74 |
| Short interest (days to cover) | 3.98d49th percentile of 110 | 3.89d47th percentile of 110 |
Short interest
| FINRA settlement data | KR | WMT |
|---|---|---|
| Shares sold short | 29.6M | 80.6M |
| Change vs prior settlement | +3.7% | -5.6% |
| Days to cover | 3.98 | 3.89 |
| As of settlement | 2026-09-15 | 2026-09-15 |
Source: FINRA Consolidated Short Interest. FINRA is the owner and source of the FINRA-supplied data; republishing or redistributing it is not permitted. Not presented as a percentage of float. No FINRA endorsement of this product is implied.
Insider activity (last 90 days)
| Form 4 activity (codes P/S) | KR | WMT |
|---|---|---|
| Buys | 0 | 0 |
| Sells | 4 ($6.2M) | 11 ($8.9M) |
Non-derivative purchases (code P) and sales (code S) reported on SEC Form 4, which may be open-market or private (grants, exercises and tax withholding excluded). For context, about 15% of covered companies saw any reported insider purchase (code P) in a 90-day window.
Held by the same investors
7 tracked 13F managers hold both Kroger and Walmart as of their latest quarterly filings: AQR Capital Management, Bridgewater Associates, Citadel Advisors, D. E. Shaw, Gotham Asset Management, Millennium Management, Two Sigma Investments. See which superinvestors hold your own portfolio with the smart money checker.
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Data sourced from SEC EDGAR. Figures are as-reported and may be unaudited or restated; verify against the source filings before relying on them. Comparisons are descriptive (higher or lower on a reported figure), not a rating or a recommendation. Informational only. Not investment advice.