Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.15

Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, July 15th, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 25th will be paid a dividend of 0.15 per share on Friday, August 8th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.85%.

Albertsons Companies has a dividend payout ratio of 26.7% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Albertsons Companies to earn $2.22 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 27.0%.

Albertsons Companies Stock Down 4.8%

Albertsons Companies stock traded down $1.06 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $21.07. The company's stock had a trading volume of 16,436,595 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,037,557. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.10, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.44. Albertsons Companies has a 52-week low of $17.00 and a 52-week high of $23.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.29, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.22. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $21.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.20.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.06. Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 1.19% and a return on equity of 41.03%. The business had revenue of $18.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.78 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.54 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Albertsons Companies will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Albertsons Companies

In other news, EVP Omer Gajial sold 47,303 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.46, for a total transaction of $1,015,122.38. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 162,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,488,730.74. The trade was a 22.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Albertsons Companies stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI - Free Report) by 109.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,542,468 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 806,336 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned 0.27% of Albertsons Companies worth $33,919,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.35% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $23.00 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $24.00 price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Monday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a $31.00 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Tigress Financial reissued a "buy" rating and set a $28.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Albertsons Companies from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $19.00 to $25.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Albertsons Companies has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $24.21.

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.