Whole Food’s stock tanked Thursday morning after a disappointing earnings report stunned investors.
Shares of the organic food retailer dropped as much as 7.4% Thursday before climbing back a bit. Since Wednesday, Whole Foods’ (WFM) stock has declined 6.9%, losing about $78 million in market value.
The reason has to do with falling same-store sales, which are sales at stores open at least one year. Whole Foods reported third-quarter results Wednesday, revealing a 0.2% drop, which was its first quarterly same-store-sales decline since 2009. Whole Foods has been squeezed by other major retailers as well as an overpricing scandal, explained Fortune’s Phil Wahba:
What’s more, Whole Foods is feeling pinched by Walmart’s grocery push and Amazon.com’s growing Fresh grocery delivery program. The company is also having trouble competing on price in a more competitive environment. And it will soon have to contend with a new grocery offering from Target.
The grocer was also hurt last summer by findings from a New York consumer affairs agency that it was overpricing some products. In July, executives said coverage of that probe had a negative effect on its earnings.
What’s more, Whole Foods is feeling pinched by Walmart’s grocery push and Amazon.com’s growing Fresh grocery delivery program. The company is also having trouble competing on price in a more competitive environment. And it will soon have to contend with a new grocery offering from Target.
The grocer was also hurt last summer by findings from a New York consumer affairs agency that it was overpricing some products. In July, executives said coverage of that probe had a negative effect on its earnings.
On top of all that, the future isn’t looking much better for Whole Foods: The company has said same-store sales were already down 2.1% this quarter.