Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 10,800,000 shares, a decline of 22.7% from the October 15th total of 13,970,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 3,440,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.1 days. Currently, 2.6% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ACI. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Monday, October 21st. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $27.25 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Friday, October 11th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Melius raised Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Melius Research raised Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, October 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.58.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ACI. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 13,010 shares of the company’s stock worth $240,000 after purchasing an additional 544 shares during the last quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 3.6% during the second quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC now owns 16,288 shares of the company’s stock worth $322,000 after buying an additional 565 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 4.9% in the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 19,324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $357,000 after acquiring an additional 895 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 1.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 60,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,198,000 after acquiring an additional 933 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 2.2% in the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 50,991 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,093,000 after acquiring an additional 1,121 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

Albertsons Companies Stock Down 0.0 %

ACI opened at $19.10 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $18.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $19.59. Albertsons Companies has a 1-year low of $17.80 and a 1-year high of $23.47. The stock has a market cap of $11.06 billion, a PE ratio of 11.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $18.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.47 billion. Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 1.25% and a return on equity of 49.50%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.60 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Albertsons Companies will post 2.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 28th were given a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 28th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.51%. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.07%.

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.