Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totaling 18,800,000 shares, agrowthof28.9% from the July 15th total of 14,580,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 5,620,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days. Approximately4.7% of the shares of the company are sold short. Approximately4.7% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 5,620,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ACI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $28.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $24.00 price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Roth Capital restated a “buy” rating and issued a $24.00 price target (up previously from $23.00) on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Wednesday. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $27.00 price target for the company. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Albertsons Companies presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.94.

Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ACI opened at $19.5080 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $20.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $21.17. Albertsons Companies has a 1 year low of $17.00 and a 1 year high of $23.20. The company has a market capitalization of $10.92 billion, a PE ratio of 11.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a current ratio of 0.82.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $24.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.68 billion. Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 1.18% and a return on equity of 37.92%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.66 earnings per share. Albertsons Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.030-2.160 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Albertsons Companies will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 25th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 25th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.59%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACI. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 54.4% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 138,347 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,717,000 after purchasing an additional 48,752 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC acquired a new position in Albertsons Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $373,000. First Trust Advisors LP purchased a new stake in shares of Albertsons Companies during the 4th quarter worth $13,841,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,636,732 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,064,000 after purchasing an additional 167,725 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new stake in shares of Albertsons Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $451,000. 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.