Why Shares of Kohl's Are Sinking Today

Key Points

• Kohl's has become a meme stock.

• Investors recently noticed the stock had close to 50% short interest.

• The company has struggled as of late.

• 10 stocks we like better than Kohl's ›

After rocketing nearly 38% higher yesterday, shares of Kohl's (NYSE: KSS) traded close to 16% lower, as of 12:12 a.m. ET today. Shares bobbed and weaved in violent trading sessions sparked by interest from retail investors, who view Kohl's as a meme stock.

Meme mania is back

With the market at all-time highs, investors are back in on meme stocks and appear to have targeted several names with high short interest that seem ripe for a short squeeze. Other stocks that have become meme stocks include Opendoor, Krispy Kreme, and GoPro.

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Kohl's had one of the highest percentages of its public float shorted at close to 50%, making it the ideal candidate for meme investors to identify. Kohl's was the topic of several threads on the popular sub-Reddit WallStreetBets on Tuesday.

Kohl's has struggled as competition from e-commerce and other discount retailers has cut into the company's business. Recently, analysts at Goldman Sachs raised their price target from $5 per share to $7 on "reacceleration in top-line growth and cleaner inventories." But the stock has soared past that level, due to the meme rally.

Of the 12 Wall Street analysts that have issued research reports on the stock over the last three months, five had a hold rating on the company, while seven say sell, according to TipRanks. The average price target implies about 43% downside, as of this writing.

Buckle up

As mentioned, Kohl's no longer trades on any kind of fundamentals and now is being propelled by social media-driven exuberance. There's no predicting where the stock will go or in which direction, so investors should avoid the name. But if you do invest, only invest what you can afford to lose.

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Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Goldman Sachs Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.