Grocery store stocks take a beating on report that Amazon will launch its own chain of supermarkets

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Amazon and Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos provides the keynote address at the Air Force Association’s Annual Air, Space & Cyber Conference in Oxen Hill, MD, on September 19, 2018.

Amazon is planning to open its own grocery stores in the U.S. at a lower price point than Whole Foods, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday. The company is planning to open dozens of the stores, according to the Journal, with the first one opening in Los Angeles as early as the end of this year.

Walmart, Kroger, Target, BJs, Costco, and Sprouts all dipped sharply on the news.

Amazon is getting ready to expand even further in early 2020 with two more leases already signed for other grocery locations. It’s unclear whether the new stores will be branded as Amazon markets, though the Journal reported the chain will be separate from the Whole Foods brand. Amazon is reportedly in talks about opening grocery stores in shopping centers based in San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia.

Amazon initially made waves in the grocery industry when it announced in 2017 its plans to buy Whole Foods, a high end retailer that prides itself on upscale produce. Now, it reportedly hopes to offer products at a more affordable price point with its new stores, which are not meant to compete with the Whole Foods brand directly.

The move marks another shift for Amazon from the digital to physical world. The company has had retail locations previously through efforts like its Amazon Go cashierless convenience stores.

Amazon did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.

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