12,622 Shares in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Purchased by Synergy Asset Management LLC

Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 12,622 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $248,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ACI. Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 115,659 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,285,000 after buying an additional 4,492 shares during the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Albertsons Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $687,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 60,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,198,000 after purchasing an additional 933 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Albertsons Companies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,629,000. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 22.1% in the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 107,792 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,992,000 after purchasing an additional 19,500 shares during the last quarter. 71.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ACI. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Albertsons Companies from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $19.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Melius upgraded shares of Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Albertsons Companies from $27.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $23.00.

Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Albertsons Companies stock opened at $20.06 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $11.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.27, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $19.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.35. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $17.00 and a 1-year high of $21.75.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $18.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.82 billion. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 44.70% and a net margin of 1.30%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.79 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This is a positive change from Albertsons Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.99%. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.97%.

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.