Kohl’s (NYSE:KSS) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Kohl’s Corporation (NYSE:KSS)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $17.68, but opened at $16.65. Kohl’s shares last traded at $17.5540, with a volume of 3,026,364 shares changing hands.

Kohl’s News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Kohl’s this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kohl’s reported second-quarter EPS of $1.28, well above analyst expectations of roughly $0.55–$0.58 and up from $0.56 a year earlier. Kohl’s Q2 Earnings Beat Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: The retailer raised fiscal 2026 guidance to EPS of $1.80–$2.40 and revenue of $15.3–$15.5 billion, above consensus expectations of $1.48 EPS and $15.0 billion in revenue. Kohl’s Profit, Sales Fall Despite Tariff Refund Boost
• Positive Sentiment: Around $150 million in tariff refunds helped support results and the improved outlook, while management cited better same-store sales trends and progress on its turnaround initiatives. Kohl’s Falls Despite Raised Guidance and Tariff Refund
• Neutral Sentiment: Kohl’s appointed Arianne Parisi as chief customer officer, a move intended to strengthen customer-focused initiatives but unlikely to materially affect near-term earnings. Kohl’s Names Arianne Parisi Chief Customer Officer
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue fell about 0.9% year over year, with sales reported around $3.3–$3.5 billion and viewed by some analysts as below expectations. Comparable-sales weakness suggests cautious consumers remain reluctant to spend on discretionary merchandise. Kohl’s Misses Quarterly Sales Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Investors appear skeptical that the earnings strength is sustainable because tariff refunds provided a one-time benefit, while management acknowledged that significant work remains on the turnaround. The combination of falling sales and limited confidence in the recovery outweighed the earnings and guidance beats. Kohl’s Comparable Sales Fall and Turnaround Work Remains

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Zacks Research downgraded Kohl’s from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Kohl’s from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Kohl’s from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 29th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Kohl’s from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Kohl’s from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kohl’s presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $15.46.

Kohl’s Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 1.48. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $18.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.02. The firm has a market cap of $2.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.65 and a beta of 1.40.

Kohl’s (NYSE:KSS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 26th. The company reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.70. The business had revenue of $3.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.32 billion. Kohl’s had a net margin of 1.76% and a return on equity of 4.67%. Kohl’s’s quarterly revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.56 earnings per share. Kohl’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.800-2.400 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Kohl’s Corporation will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Kohl’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 9th will be given a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 9th. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Kohl’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kohl’s news, EVP Jennifer J. Kent sold 22,942 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.00, for a total transaction of $458,840.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 234,452 shares in the company, valued at $4,689,040. The trade was a 8.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.55% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kohl’s

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Baird Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Kohl’s in the first quarter worth about $96,000. Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Kohl’s in the first quarter worth approximately $166,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kohl’s by 14.2% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 489,708 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,006,000 after buying an additional 60,769 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kohl’s during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $120,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in Kohl’s by 21.6% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 33,708 shares of the company’s stock valued at $286,000 after acquiring an additional 5,997 shares during the period. 98.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kohl’s Company Profile

Kohl’s Corporation, founded in 1962 by Maxwell Kohl and headquartered in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, is a leading American department store retailer. The company operates approximately 1,100 stores across 49 states, offering a combination of value-oriented pricing, private-label brands and national labels. Since its initial public offering in 1992, Kohl’s has focused on broadening its product assortment and enhancing the in-store and online shopping experience.

The retailer’s merchandise portfolio spans apparel, footwear, accessories, and beauty products for women, men and children, as well as home goods, kitchenware and seasonal décor.