Melbourne, June 12, 2026, 18:30 (AEST)
- Coles Group Ltd ended at A$24.01 at 4:00pm AEST, slipping 0.4% for the day. Shares traded between A$23.84 and A$24.22.
- ASX:COL is still near its 52-week high, up 10.14% from the close seven days ago.
- Analyst price targets suggest there isn’t much room for near-term gains, but broker sentiment is still mostly positive.
Coles Group Ltd shares ended Friday little changed after a sharp rally earlier this week. The supermarket operator’s investor page had ASX:COL at A$24.01 at 4:00pm AEST, down A$0.09, or 0.4%. The stock is still up more than 10% from its close seven days ago, according to market data, and sits just under Google Finance’s 52-week high of A$24.28.
Coles is starting to trade less like a traditional grocer and more like a defensive play. Consumer staples stocks led the ASX rebound on Wednesday, with the sector’s sub-index jumping 3.9%. Coles gained roughly 5%, Reuters reported, as published by Business Recorder. Investors appear ready to pay up for steady earnings while the wider market stays volatile.
Coles’ rally is being driven by its most recent trading update, not a new earnings report. The retailer posted A$10.70 billion in total group sales for 3Q26, up 3.1%. Supermarket sales climbed 4.0% to A$9.78 billion. Comparable sales in supermarkets grew 3.6%, and when taking out tobacco, sales were up 5.7%. That points to growth beyond just price increases.
Online sales still drive the bullish view. Coles reported supermarket eCommerce sales up 24.8% to A$1.33 billion, with eCommerce penetration reaching 13.6%. “Value and availability will be important to our customers,” CEO Leah Weckert said in the release. Investors will be watching for signs of that when Coles posts its next FY26 trading update following the end of the quarter on June 28.
The next key test is the fourth-quarter and full-year FY26 numbers: if supermarkets held “broadly in line” with the third quarter, if eCommerce still took share, and if margin pressure turned up from costs. In the 3Q26 update, Coles flagged more suppliers asking for cost-price hikes and saw higher costs in fuel, freight and packaging. Liquor stayed soft, with third-quarter liquor sales off 3.9%, and comparable liquor sales down 4.3%.
Coles keeps its defensive-growth appeal for bulls. Supermarket sales are up, online is getting bigger, shoppers like the private-label and value deals, and lower supermarket inflation (excluding tobacco) means sales growth is coming from more goods sold, not just price rises. Bears say that’s all in the price now. Google Finance puts Coles’ P/E at 31.75, which is what investors pay for a dollar of earnings. MarketScreener shows 16 analysts with an average target of A$23.26, under the latest price of A$24.01.
Regulatory risk is still a factor in how Coles is priced. In May, the ACCC said the Federal Court found Coles Supermarkets Australia misled customers with “Down Down” discounts. Penalties are still coming. Separately, Coles paid A$39,600 in Dairy Code penalties, though the ACCC said that wasn’t an admission of wrongdoing. With all that, Coles stock is trading close to its 52-week high and doesn’t look cheap. Analyst targets suggest there’s little room for mistakes. The next update has to show that strong grocery sales are enough to make up for weaker liquor sales, higher costs and ongoing compliance risks. ACCC
