Trader Joe's is a very popular supermarket chain. According to a 2025 YouGov survey, it was the third-most popular grocery store chain in the U.S. Fans love its quirky products, low prices, and great customer service.
The company's popularity has made it a very successful grocery store operator, driven by its smaller storefronts and focus on stocking low-priced and interesting products that fly off the shelves.
Is Trader Joe's publicly traded?
Trader Joe's is not a publicly traded company. It's a private company owned by Aldi Nord, part of the Aldi Group, which owns the Aldi supermarket chain. Aldi Nord acquired Trader Joe's from its founder, Joe Coulombe, in 1979.
When will Trader Joe's IPO?
Trader Joe's didn't have an IPO on the calendar as of mid-2025. The company likely won't go public anytime soon. It has been part of the privately held Aldi Nord since 1979 and has expanded steadily over the years without needing to tap outside investors to help fund its growth.
IPO
Is it profitable?
Trader Joe's is a privately held company, so it doesn't need to report its financial results publicly. However, all indications suggest that Trader Joe's is profitable.
It reportedly generates about $16.5 billion in annual revenue. Because the company generates such strong sales per store (albeit from a smaller average store footprint), it's likely more profitable than others in the grocery segment.
Trader Joe's would also have to be profitable to grow as briskly as it has been over the years, with more than 600 U.S. grocery stores in 2025, including plans to add 21 new locations in 13 states in 2025. It was investing heavily to continue expanding, something it couldn't afford to do if it wasn't consistently profitable.
Alternatives to Trader Joe's
You can't buy Trader Joe's stock or shares of its parent company, Aldi Nord. However, you can still invest in the grocery and retail sector, which is driving its growth. Three top grocery and retail stocks to consider are:
Costco
Costco (COST -0.68%) operates membership warehouses and e-commerce sites that provide members with low prices on many products, including groceries and household items. Costco has more than 600 warehouses in the U.S. and more than 900 locations worldwide.
The company's net sales totaled $249.6 billion in its 2024 fiscal year, a 5% increase from the prior year. Meanwhile, Costco is tremendously profitable, producing $7.37 billion in net income for the year.
Walmart
Walmart (NYSE:WMT) is a behemoth in the retail industry. It provides lower-priced groceries and merchandise to more than 255 million customers and members weekly at its 10,797 retail stores and e-commerce sites across 19 countries.
The global retail giant tallied $681 billion in revenue during its 2024 fiscal year. The company's revenue will likely continue rising in 2025 as it grows sales at existing locations and adds new ones around the world.
How to buy stocks similar to Trader Joe's
Investors who want to buy one of Trader Joe's competitors can purchase shares in any brokerage account. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to invest in stocks like grocer Trader Joe's.
- Open your brokerage account: Log in to your brokerage account where you handle your investments.
- Search for the stock: Enter the ticker or company name into the search bar to bring up the stock's trading page.
- Decide how many shares to buy: Consider your investment goals and how much of your portfolio you want to allocate to this stock.
- Select order type: Choose between a market order to buy at the current price or a limit order to specify the maximum price you're willing to pay.
- Submit your order: Confirm the details and submit your buy order.
- Review your purchase: Check your portfolio to ensure your order was filled as expected and adjust your investment strategy accordingly.
ETFs with exposure to Trader Joe's
Investing in individual stocks isn't for everyone, so many investors turn to exchange-traded funds (ETFs). ETFs enable them to passively invest in the stock market or in a specific theme, such as grocery and retail stocks.
Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF)
Since Trader Joe's isn't a publicly traded company, you can't use an ETF to gain passive exposure to its stock. However, you can use them to invest more broadly in the grocery and retail sectors. Two notable retail ETFs to consider are:
- SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT -0.79%): This ETF allows you to invest broadly across the U.S. retail sector. The fund had a relatively equal weighting to 77 retail companies in mid-2025, including Costco (1.25% of its holdings), Walmart (1.31%), and Kroger (1.42%). It had a 0.35% gross ETF expense ratio.
- VanEck Retail ETF (RTH -0.01%): This fund enables investors to focus on 26 of the top U.S. retail stocks. Costco (8.11% of the fund's assets), Walmart (8.90%), and Kroger (2.57%) were all among its holdings in mid-2025. The ETF also had a 0.35% expense ratio.
Should you invest in Trader Joe's?
You can't invest in Trader Joe's because it's a privately held company. However, you can invest in other grocery and retail stocks, like Kroger, Costco, and Walmart. While grocery stores traditionally have very low profit margins, they can be enriching long-term investments.
For example, Costco delivered a 23.98% average annual total return over the past decade, outperforming the S&P 500's 15.09% annualized total return during that period. Kroger and Walmart have also delivered solid total returns over the last decade (9.66% and 18.56%, respectively). So, if you want to make money by investing in the grocery sector, these stocks could help you achieve that goal.
The bottom line
Trader Joe's is one of the most popular grocery stores. Unfortunately, its fans can't invest in the supermarket chain and share in its success because it's not a publicly traded company. However, they can invest in the grocery sector, which can be a good long-term investment.
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