Canadian Halal Investor.

NYSE Shariah screener · October 2026

Is The Kroger Co. (KR) Halal?

FAIL

The Kroger Co. · NYSE: KR · Consumer Staples

The short answer

No - The Kroger Co. (KR) fails this Shariah stock screen at Gate 2. Kroger, headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, is one of the largest U.S. grocery retailers - 2,697 stores at the end of fiscal 2025, reporting a single retail-operations segment with no haram business segment disclosed. Total interest-bearing debt of $16,997M is about 47.59% of its ~$35.71B market cap - above the ~33% ceiling. Interest income of ~$199M is about 0.13% of FY2025 sales, under the 5% ceiling. Facts only - not a religious ruling; consult a qualified scholar.

Gate 1 — Business activity: PASS

The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR), headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio (1014 Vine Street; incorporated in Ohio; Commission File No. 1-303), is one of the largest grocery retailers in the United States, founded in 1883 by Bernard Kroger. Per its FY2025 Form 10-K (fiscal year ended January 31, 2026), Kroger operated 2,697 supermarkets and other stores at fiscal year-end and reports a single reportable segment: retail operations - supermarkets, multi-department stores, pharmacies, convenience stores, and fuel centers. No alcohol, tobacco, gambling, weapons, adult entertainment, pork, or conventional finance business segment is disclosed; all reported revenue sits in the retail operations segment. Gate 1: PASS.

Gate 2 — Debt and cash: FAIL

Per Kroger's Q2 FY2026 Form 10-Q (period ended August 15, 2026; Commission File No. 1-303), total interest-bearing debt was $16,997M - current portion of long-term debt including obligations under finance leases $1,838M + long-term debt including obligations under finance leases $15,159M (noncurrent operating lease liabilities $6,497M and current operating lease liabilities $664M excluded as non-interest-bearing). Against a market cap of about $35.71B (Finnhub live quote, NYSE: KR, October 2, 2026), debt / market cap is about 47.59% - above the ~33% ceiling, so Gate 2 fails. Cash $201M + temporary cash investments $1,475M = $1,676M, about 4.69% of market cap. Facts only.

Gate 3 — Non-compliant income: PASS

Kroger's FY2025 Form 10-K (fiscal year ended January 31, 2026; Commission File No. 1-303) discloses interest income of approximately $199M in the notes ('Interest income of approximately $199, $311 and $118 for 2025, 2024 and 2023, respectively, is included in Net interest expense in the Company's Consolidated Statements of Operations'), against FY2025 total sales of $147,642M - about 0.13% of revenue, below the 5% non-compliant income ceiling, so Gate 3 passes. Facts only.

Key figures used

Frequently asked questions

What does Kroger do?

The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR), headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, is one of the largest grocery retailers in the United States, founded in 1883 by Bernard Kroger (incorporated in Ohio; Commission File No. 1-303). Per its FY2025 Form 10-K (fiscal year ended January 31, 2026), Kroger operated 2,697 supermarkets and other stores at fiscal year-end and reports a single reportable segment - retail operations - covering supermarkets, multi-department stores, pharmacies, convenience stores, and fuel centers. FY2025 sales were $147,642 million. Q2 FY2026 (period ended August 15, 2026) sales were $34,621 million with operating profit of $971 million.

Why does Kroger fail this Shariah stock screen?

Kroger fails at Gate 2. Gate 1 (business activity): the single reportable segment is retail operations - grocery and supermarket retail - with no alcohol, tobacco, gambling, weapons, adult entertainment, pork, or conventional finance segment disclosed; Gate 1 passes. Gate 2 (debt): total interest-bearing debt of $16,997M (current portion of long-term debt including obligations under finance leases $1,838M + long-term debt including obligations under finance leases $15,159M, Q2 FY2026 10-Q at August 15, 2026) is about 47.59% of its ~$35.71B market cap (Finnhub live quote, October 2, 2026) - above the ~33% ceiling; Gate 2 fails. Gate 3 (non-compliant income): interest income of approximately $199M (FY2025 10-K note) is about 0.13% of FY2025 sales ($147,642M) - below the 5% ceiling; Gate 3 passes. Result: FAIL. This is a factual screen, not a religious ruling - consult a qualified scholar for personal rulings.

What is Kroger's interest-bearing debt ratio?

Per Kroger's Q2 FY2026 Form 10-Q (period ended August 15, 2026; Commission File No. 1-303), total interest-bearing debt was $16,997M - current portion of long-term debt including obligations under finance leases $1,838M + long-term debt including obligations under finance leases $15,159M. Operating lease liabilities ($664M current + $6,497M noncurrent) are excluded as non-interest-bearing. Against a market cap of about $35.71B (Finnhub live quote, October 2, 2026), debt / market cap is about 47.59% - above the ~33% ceiling, so Gate 2 fails. Cash and temporary cash investments totaled $1,676M ($201M cash + $1,475M temporary cash investments), about 4.69% of market cap. The filing's own 'total debt' reconciliation also reports $16,997M; the company disclosed $1.0B of commercial paper borrowings outstanding at quarter-end. Facts only.

What is Kroger's non-compliant income ratio?

Kroger's FY2025 Form 10-K (fiscal year ended January 31, 2026; Commission File No. 1-303) discloses in the notes that 'interest income of approximately $199, $311 and $118 for 2025, 2024 and 2023, respectively, is included in Net interest expense in the Company's Consolidated Statements of Operations.' Against FY2025 total sales of $147,642M, the $199M of interest income is about 0.13% of revenue - below the 5% non-compliant income ceiling, so Gate 3 passes. Q2 FY2026 net interest expense was $156M ($661M on a rolling four-quarter basis). Facts only.

Do Zoya, Musaffa, or ShariaPortfolio cover Kroger?

Zoya covers Kroger at zoya.finance/stocks/kr: as of September 2026 it flags KR as 'not Shariah-compliant and therefore not considered halal to invest in' (AAOIFI guidelines). The page also carries contradictory auto-generated template text (one FAQ line reads 'not Shariah-compliant and therefore considered halal,' an obvious template glitch), and its interest-income FAQ reports $0 / 'no separate interest income disclosed' - which differs from the FY2025 10-K note disclosing approximately $199M of interest income included in net interest expense. Musaffa covers Kroger at musaffa.com/stock/KR/: as of October 2026 it classifies Kroger Co as NOT HALAL under its AAOIFI methodology. No ShariaPortfolio screening page or rating for KR was found in search. All reported honestly; this screen is computed directly from Kroger's SEC filings, not from these services.

Sources

Screened 2026-10-02 from published company figures and market data. Figures change; this page is educational, not financial advice and not a religious ruling.

Screened with our two-gate Shariah screening methodology (business-activity gate, then AAOIFI-style financial ratios).