Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Stock Position Increased by Symmetry Partners LLC

Symmetry Partners LLC lifted its position in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) by 11.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,835 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,149 shares during the period. Symmetry Partners LLC’s holdings in Albertsons Companies were worth $232,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ACI. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 255.1% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,463 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,051 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Albertsons Companies during the third quarter worth $52,000. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Albertsons Companies during the fourth quarter worth $62,000. CI Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 21.8% during the third quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 4,373 shares of the company’s stock worth $99,000 after purchasing an additional 783 shares during the period. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 41.9% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 7,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $175,000 after purchasing an additional 2,250 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ACI shares. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Roth Mkm upgraded Albertsons Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $27.25 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Roth Capital upgraded Albertsons Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $24.45.

Insider Buying and Selling at Albertsons Companies

In other Albertsons Companies news, CAO Robert Bruce Larson sold 24,362 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.24, for a total value of $493,086.88. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 50,241 shares in the company, valued at $1,016,877.84. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, insider Anuj Dhanda sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.35, for a total transaction of $2,035,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 365,297 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,433,793.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Robert Bruce Larson sold 24,362 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.24, for a total value of $493,086.88. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 50,241 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,016,877.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Albertsons Companies Stock Down 0.7 %

NYSE ACI traded down $0.14 on Tuesday, reaching $19.93. The stock had a trading volume of 2,527,893 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,960,425. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $20.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $19.83 and a 1 year high of $23.88. The company has a market capitalization of $11.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.50.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 68.02% and a net margin of 1.64%. The firm had revenue of $18.34 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.40 billion. On average, analysts forecast that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 26th were paid a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 25th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.41%. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.52%.

Albertsons Companies Company 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.