Albertsons is giving up on its merger with Kroger and it is suing the grocery chain, saying it didn’t do enough to secure regulatory approval for the $24.6 billion agreement.

A judge blocked Kroger's $24.6 billion acquisition of Albertsons Cos., finding the takeover would lessen competition for grocery shoppers in a ruling that marks a likely death knell for the deal.

During visits to Costco stores in northern New Jersey, Oppenheimer analyst Rupesh Parikh said his team “observed behaviors similar to the start of the pandemic.”

Albertsons and Kroger insist a merger would help them lower prices and better compete with big rivals such as Walmart, Costco and Amazon.

Kroger Co. lifted its full-year sales guidance as the grocery-store operator benefits from consumers prioritizing spending on groceries and other essentials.

PORTLAND, Ore. — The CEOs of Kroger and Albertsons were set to testify in federal court Sept. 4, midway through a three-week hearing in which the grocery chains have defended their proposed merger.

Kroger Co. and Albertsons Cos. are finally getting their day in court. Nearly two years after the acquisition was announced, the grocery giants on Aug. 26 started a federal court hearing in Portland, Ore., on the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s bid to block the $24.6 billion deal.

Albertsons Cos. was sued by an e-commerce software maker that claims the grocery chain conducted trials with its product for three years only to steal its trade secrets to build its own system.

Kroger Co. has pledged to cut grocery prices by $1 billion, doubling its initial promise, as it seeks to win regulatory approval for its $25 billion merger with Albertsons Cos.

Kroger Co. and Albertsons Cos. have spent more than $800 million on fees paid to lawyers, bankers and advisers for their proposed merger.