Short Interest in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Increases By 117.7%

Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 20,030,000 shares, a growth of 117.7% from the February 28th total of 9,200,000 shares. Approximately 4.8% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 6,460,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.1 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on ACI shares. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $22.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $26.00 price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $19.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Albertsons Companies currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.50.

Albertsons Companies Trading Up 2.1 %

NYSE ACI opened at $21.61 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.93. Albertsons Companies has a one year low of $17.00 and a one year high of $22.05. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.52 billion, a PE ratio of 12.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.50.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $18.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.82 billion. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 44.70% and a net margin of 1.30%. Albertsons Companies’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.79 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Albertsons Companies will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This is a positive change from Albertsons Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.71%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC lifted its position in Albertsons Companies by 108.4% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 1,346 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV increased its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 47,232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $941,000 after purchasing an additional 891 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 225.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,385 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 959 shares during the last quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 40,476 shares of the company’s stock worth $795,000 after buying an additional 1,146 shares during the period. Finally, Rehmann Capital Advisory Group grew its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 24,765 shares of the company’s stock worth $486,000 after buying an additional 1,153 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

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.