KBC Group NV Purchases 6,770 Shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

KBC Group NV raised its position in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) by 37.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 24,949 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 6,770 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Albertsons Companies were worth $461,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 108.4% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,365 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 1,230 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Albertsons Companies by 2,948.4% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 2,801 shares in the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd boosted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 133.3% in the 1st quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 4,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 2,800 shares during the period. Intact Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $126,000. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies during the second quarter worth approximately $150,000. Institutional investors own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ACI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Melius upgraded Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Melius Research upgraded Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $23.58.

Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

Albertsons Companies stock opened at $19.26 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58. The stock has a market cap of $11.16 billion, a PE ratio of 11.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.49. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.80 and a 12-month high of $23.47. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $18.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.55.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.03. The company 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.60 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 28th were paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 28th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.49%. Albertsons Companies’s payout ratio is presently 28.07%.

Albertsons Companies Profile

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.