Key Takeaways Kroger shares rose Thursday morning after the retailer said it is abandoning the Albertsons merger and restarting stock buybacks.The grocery chain said after the bell Wednesday that it will begin a new $7.

Albertsons’ lawsuit said the rival grocery company failed to exercise its best efforts to win regulatory approval for the $20 billion deal.

For the two grocery rivals, which had been on track to marry their numerous supermarket banners, the lawsuit amounts to a corporate divorce battle.