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Kohl's Corporation

KSS
44
Department Stores · Consumer Cyclical
Also trades as: 0JRL.L
Winston Score
44
Winston is serious
Mixed quality — meaningful strengths and weaknesses.
Data as of Aug 23, 2026 · filings through May 2, 2026
How the score breaks down
Quality
Mixed
Growth
Good
Cash Flow
Strong
Stability
Good
Valuation
Good
Dividends
Mixed

Winston Score History

The full picture

Kohl's is a large American department store chain that sells clothing, shoes, home goods, and accessories. It targets middle-income families and shoppers looking for discounted name-brand items. The company operates roughly 1,100 stores across the United States and also runs an e-commerce website.

Kohl's makes money primarily through direct product sales in its stores and online. It operates exclusively in the United States, making it vulnerable to shifts in American consumer spending. The company has faced years of declining store traffic as shoppers move online, and its thin 3.2% operating margin leaves little room for error. The main challenge ahead is reversing falling sales while managing debt and competing against both fast-fashion retailers and e-commerce giants like Amazon, with which Kohl's has a partnership allowing customers to return Amazon packages in-store.

Score breakdown

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Quality

Profit per sale
Gross Margin
37.6%
Modest — 37.6% gross margin
Profit after running costs
Operating Margin
1.5%
Thin — 1.5% operating margin
Return on the money invested
ROCE
9.1%
Below par — 9.1% return on capital

ROIC between 5% and 15%. They earn 5 to 15 cents back per year on every dollar invested.

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Growth

Sales growth
Sales YoY
-3.8%
Shrinking sales (-3.8% YoY)
Profit growth
EPS YoY
+124.0%
Earnings growing fast (+124.0% YoY)

Earnings growing 25%+ a year. The compounder zone.

How steady the profit is
EPS Consistency
5/8 quarters
Mixed — about half the quarters showed growth

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Cash Flow

Profit that turns into cash
Cash Conversion
514%
Turns 514% of profit into real cash
Spare cash per sale
FCF Margin
6.4%
Modest free cash flow (6.4%)

FCF margin between 0% and 10%. Some cash from sales, but not a lot.

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Stability

What it owes vs what it owns
Debt / Equity
0.35
Conservative — low debt load (0.35)
Covers its interest
Interest Cover
1.80x
Dangerous — barely covers interest (1.8x)

Interest coverage between 1 and 3. Profits cover interest, but with little room to spare.

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Valuation

Price vs profit
P/E Ratio (TTM)
7.2x
no trend
Attractive valuation — P/E 7.2

P/E under 10. The price tag is small relative to last year's profit.

Cheaper or dearer next year
P/E vs Forward
-4.9
SLOWING
Earnings expected to fall — forward P/E higher than today

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Dividends

Dividend
Dividend Yield
2.84%
no trend
Moderate income — 2.84% yield

Standard yield zone for stable dividend payers. A meaningful piece of total return.

Dividend record
Dividend Growth
-42.9%
no trend
Dividend cut (-42.9% YoY) — warning sign

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