Swiss National Bank Cuts Position in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

Swiss National Bank trimmed its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) by 4.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,063,400 shares of the company’s stock after selling 53,800 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned 0.18% of Albertsons Companies worth $20,885,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in Albertsons Companies by 13,314.5% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 9,256 shares of the company’s stock worth $182,000 after buying an additional 9,187 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Albertsons Companies by 316.6% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,787 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 1,358 shares during the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Albertsons Companies during the 4th quarter worth $955,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in Albertsons Companies by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 29,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $581,000 after buying an additional 2,100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Burren Capital Advisors Ltd purchased a new position in Albertsons Companies during the 4th quarter worth $1,560,000. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Albertsons Companies Stock Up 0.4 %

ACI stock opened at $22.02 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $20.56 and its 200 day moving average is $19.52. The firm has a market cap of $12.76 billion, a PE ratio of 12.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.50. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $17.00 and a one year high of $22.05. 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 (NYSE:ACI) last posted 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 firm had revenue of $18.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.82 billion. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 44.70% and a net margin of 1.30%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.79 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This is a positive change from Albertsons Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.73%. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on ACI shares. Bank of America started coverage on Albertsons Companies in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $22.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Albertsons Companies from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $26.00 price target 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 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on Albertsons Companies from $27.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $23.50.

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.