Westchester Capital Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

Westchester Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,383,603 shares of the company’s stock after selling 62,768 shares during the period. Albertsons Companies makes up 1.1% of Westchester Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Westchester Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Albertsons Companies were worth $25,569,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 88.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 16,841,582 shares of the company’s stock valued at $311,232,000 after buying an additional 7,887,688 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in Albertsons Companies by 25.1% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,170,601 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,033,000 after acquiring an additional 1,239,978 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 38.7% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,426,264 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,669,000 after acquiring an additional 956,744 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 25.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,624,692 shares of the company’s stock valued at $91,337,000 after acquiring an additional 924,519 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lubert Adler Management Company LP grew its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 47.1% in the second quarter. Lubert Adler Management Company LP now owns 2,664,735 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,629,000 after purchasing an additional 852,857 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

Albertsons Companies Trading Up 1.1 %

NYSE ACI opened at $19.83 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $11.49 billion, a PE ratio of 11.60, a PEG ratio of 1.15 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 company’s 50-day moving average price is $18.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $19.50. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.03. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 49.50% and a net margin of 1.25%. The firm had revenue of $18.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.60 earnings per share. Albertsons Companies’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 28th were given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 28th. Albertsons Companies’s payout ratio is 28.07%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ACI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $27.25 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Friday, October 11th. 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 research note on Monday, October 21st. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Monday, October 21st. Melius upgraded Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $23.58.

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.