Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the sixteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have assigned a hold recommendation and nine have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $21.5833.

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on ACI shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Albertsons Companies from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Albertsons Companies in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 8th.

Albertsons Companies Price Performance

Shares of ACI stock opened at $17.35 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $8.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.19, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 0.48. Albertsons Companies has a 12 month low of $15.80 and a 12 month high of $23.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.36. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $17.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.78.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 7th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.05. Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 1.06% and a return on equity of 38.00%. The company had revenue of $19.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.71 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Albertsons Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.080-2.16 EPS. Research analysts expect that Albertsons Companies will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 23rd. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.71%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael T. Theilmann sold 49,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.63, for a total value of $863,870.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 289,429 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,102,633.27. This represents a 14.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $388,089,000. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 101.0% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,687,694 shares of the company’s stock worth $200,678,000 after purchasing an additional 5,873,759 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 62.4% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,429,784 shares of the company’s stock valued at $230,595,000 after buying an additional 5,159,905 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 14.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 39,330,507 shares of the company’s stock valued at $675,305,000 after buying an additional 5,110,777 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management increased its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 34.4% in the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 10,578,407 shares of the company’s stock valued at $227,542,000 after buying an additional 2,705,368 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

Albertsons Companies Company Profile

Albertsons Companies, Inc (NYSE: ACI) is one of the largest food and drug retailers in the United States, operating a diversified portfolio of grocery store banners. Founded in 1939 by Joe Albertson in Boise, Idaho, the company has grown through both organic expansion and strategic acquisitions. Its core business activities encompass the sale of fresh produce, meat, bakery items, deli offerings, pharmacy services, and general merchandise. The company’s retail operations are complemented by an in-house private-label program, featuring brands such as O Organics, Open Nature, and Lucerne, which cater to a range of customer preferences and price points.

Throughout its history, Albertsons Companies has pursued growth via mergers and partnerships.