Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Receives $23.50 Average PT from Analysts

Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have issued a hold recommendation and twelve have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $23.5625.

A number of brokerages recently commented on ACI. Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $24.00 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Albertsons Companies from $27.00 to $24.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Albertsons Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Albertsons Companies from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th.

Insider Activity at Albertsons Companies

In other Albertsons Companies news, insider Anuj Dhanda sold 230,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.25, for a total value of $4,427,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 300,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,786,107.25. The trade was a 43.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael T. Theilmann sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.35, for a total transaction of $1,935,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 338,429 shares in the company, valued at $6,548,601.15. This represents a 22.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,374,669 shares of the company’s stock worth $821,869,000 after acquiring an additional 1,064,547 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Albertsons Companies during the second quarter worth approximately $320,613,000. LSV Asset Management grew its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 34.4% during the second quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 10,578,407 shares of the company’s stock valued at $227,542,000 after purchasing an additional 2,705,368 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 7.2% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,977,542 shares of the company’s stock valued at $171,597,000 after purchasing an additional 539,250 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 1.6% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,901,015 shares of the company’s stock worth $169,510,000 after buying an additional 124,824 shares during the last quarter. 71.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albertsons Companies Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of Albertsons Companies stock opened at $19.66 on Friday. Albertsons Companies has a 1 year low of $16.70 and a 1 year high of $23.20. The company has a market cap of $10.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $18.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $20.38.

Albertsons Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 24th. Albertsons Companies’s payout ratio is currently 35.50%.

About Albertsons Companies

Albertsons Companies, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the operation of food and drug stores in the United States. The company’s food and drug retail stores offer grocery products, general merchandise, health and beauty care products, pharmacy, fuel, and other items and services. It also manufactures and processes food products for sale in stores.