Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Shares Acquired by Northern Trust Corp

Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI - Free Report) by 38.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,786,507 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 774,978 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 0.48% of Albertsons Companies worth $54,727,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 108.4% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 1,346 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 225.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,385 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 959 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 316.6% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,787 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,358 shares during the period. Ossiam acquired a new stake in shares of Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $93,000. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 91.0% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 8,610 shares of the company's stock valued at $169,000 after purchasing an additional 4,101 shares during the period. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ACI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup began coverage on Albertsons Companies in a research note on Friday, January 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $26.00 price objective for the company. Tigress Financial lifted their price target on shares of Albertsons Companies from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $23.00 price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Albertsons Companies has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $24.36.

Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Albertsons Companies stock opened at $22.43 on Thursday. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $17.00 and a 12 month high of $23.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.60, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.47. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $21.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $20.30.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.06. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 44.70% and a net margin of 1.30%. The firm had revenue of $18.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.78 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.54 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th will be given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 25th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.67%. Albertsons Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.59%.

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.

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