Alpine Associates Management Inc. Has $84.11 Million Stake in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

Alpine Associates Management Inc. cut its holdings in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 4,551,117 shares of the company’s stock after selling 116,617 shares during the period. Albertsons Companies comprises approximately 3.9% of Alpine Associates Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 9th largest position. Alpine Associates Management Inc.’s holdings in Albertsons Companies were worth $84,105,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 108.4% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,365 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 1,230 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 2,948.4% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 2,801 shares in the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 133.3% in the 1st quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 4,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,000 after acquiring an additional 2,800 shares in the last quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies in the 2nd quarter worth about $126,000. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies in the 2nd quarter worth about $150,000. 71.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Melius upgraded Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Tigress Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Melius Research upgraded Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.58.

Albertsons Companies Price Performance

ACI stock opened at $19.26 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.49. 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $17.80 and a 52-week high of $23.47. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.55.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.03. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 49.50% and a net margin of 1.25%. The firm had revenue of $18.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.60 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 2.49%. Albertsons Companies’s payout ratio is presently 28.07%.

About Albertsons Companies

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.