Shares in Ocado skyrocketed on Thursday amid speculation on whether the online supermarket could benefit from a merger between US leading grocer Kroger and its smaller rival, Albertsons.
The British supermarket and online delivery business partnered with the US retailer after a 2018 deal that saw it supply its automated warehousing technology.
Rumours that Kroger – America’s largest supermarket – was in talks to merge with its biggest rival Albertsons, sent Ocado shares up 10.9% or 42.7p per share.
The initial collaboration saw Kroger, Ocado’s biggest client, identify at least 20 sites to build automated warehouses, or Customer Fulfilment Centres (CFCs), in the United States.
News of the merger, as reported by Bloomberg yesterday, sent Ocado to the top of the FTSE 100 index after its biggest daily rise in stock shares since May.
As the US retailer looked to ramp up its delivery business using Ocado’s robotic warehouses, which picks and packs grocery orders to be distributed to customers, it is speculated that Albertsons will also make use of the technology if the deal goes through.
