Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) Now Covered by Analysts at Bank of America

Bank of America started coverage on shares of Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) in a report released on Friday. The brokerage issued a neutral rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock.

ACI has been the topic of several other reports. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Albertsons Companies from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Albertsons Companies from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Melius upgraded Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $19.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.09.

Albertsons Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ACI opened at $19.49 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.90. Albertsons Companies has a fifty-two week low of $17.00 and a fifty-two week high of $23.47. The stock has a market cap of $11.29 billion, a PE ratio of 11.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.51. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $18.87 and a 200-day moving average of $19.39.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $18.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.47 billion. Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 1.25% and a return on equity of 49.50%. Albertsons Companies’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.60 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Albertsons Companies will post 2.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 28th were paid a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 28th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.46%. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.07%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 108.4% during the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,365 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 1,230 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Albertsons Companies by 2,948.4% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 2,801 shares during the period. Intact Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Albertsons Companies in the second quarter worth approximately $126,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Albertsons Companies in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $150,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC raised its stake in Albertsons Companies by 2,243.9% during the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 8,977 shares of the company’s stock valued at $177,000 after buying an additional 8,594 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.