Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Receives $21.58 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) have received an average rating of “Hold” from the sixteen research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have assigned a hold recommendation and nine have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $21.5833.

ACI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $21.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Albertsons Companies from $25.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 8th.

Albertsons Companies Stock Down 1.0%

NYSE ACI opened at $17.12 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $17.50 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.80 billion, a PE ratio of 11.04, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 0.48. Albertsons Companies has a fifty-two week low of $15.80 and a fifty-two week high of $23.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.36, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.20.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 7th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.05. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 38.00% and a net margin of 1.06%.The company had revenue of $19.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.71 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Albertsons Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.080-2.16 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Albertsons Companies will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 23rd were given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 23rd. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 38.71%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael T. Theilmann sold 49,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.63, for a total value of $863,870.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 289,429 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,102,633.27. This represents a 14.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.35% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 109.5% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,542,468 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,919,000 after acquiring an additional 806,336 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in Albertsons Companies in the first quarter valued at $1,090,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Albertsons Companies by 6.2% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 119,611 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,573,000 after purchasing an additional 6,938 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 3.4% during the second quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 17,870 shares of the company’s stock valued at $384,000 after purchasing an additional 592 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 98.4% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 844 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

About Albertsons Companies

Albertsons Companies, Inc (NYSE: ACI) is one of the largest food and drug retailers in the United States, operating a diversified portfolio of grocery store banners. Founded in 1939 by Joe Albertson in Boise, Idaho, the company has grown through both organic expansion and strategic acquisitions. Its core business activities encompass the sale of fresh produce, meat, bakery items, deli offerings, pharmacy services, and general merchandise. The company’s retail operations are complemented by an in-house private-label program, featuring brands such as O Organics, Open Nature, and Lucerne, which cater to a range of customer preferences and price points.

Throughout its history, Albertsons Companies has pursued growth via mergers and partnerships.