** Shares of certain U.S. food retailers rise after brokerage Deutsche Bank resumes coverage with "buy" rating

**Membership-only retail chain COST.O up ~5.5% after shares rose 2.3% last night after its December sales report

** "Costco's results pointed to a steady growth in comparable sales in December, "says analyst Michael Lasser from UBS

** Shares of big-box retailer Target TGT.N rise 3%

** U.S. grocer Kroger KR.N up ~2%, while shares of Albertsons ACI.N up ~3%

** Expect another mixed year in 2026 characterized by food disinflation, reduced SNAP and Medicaid benefits and potentially sustained GLP-1 tailwinds — analysts at Deutsche Bank

** Add that tax refunds are expected to benefit mainly low- to middle-income consumers, while affluent households could gain from higher state and local tax deductions

** In 2025 COST lost ~6% and TGT fell ~28%, while KR rose 2.2%

(Reporting by Koyena Das in Bengaluru)

((koyena.das@thomsonreuters.com))