Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) Price Target Cut to $22.00 by Analysts at Bank of America

Key Points

• Bank of America has lowered its price target for Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $22.00, maintaining a "neutral" rating, which suggests a potential upside of 14.91% from the current trading price.
• Other analysts have varying views, with UBS Group upgrading Albertsons from "neutral" to "buy," increasing its price target to $27.00, while others like Zacks Research have upgraded from "strong sell" to "hold."
• Albertsons shares fell by 0.6% reaching $19.15, with an average price target of $23.63 from analysts, indicating a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) had its price target decreased by analysts at Bank of America from $24.00 to $22.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "neutral" rating on the stock. Bank of America's price target indicates a potential upside of 14.91% from the company's current price.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on ACI. UBS Group upgraded Albertsons Companies from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $22.00 to $27.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Zacks Research upgraded Albertsons Companies from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Albertsons Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Tigress Financial restated a "buy" rating and issued a $28.00 price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Roth Capital restated a "buy" rating and issued a $24.00 price objective (up from $23.00) on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Albertsons Companies currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $23.63.

Albertsons Companies Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of Albertsons Companies stock traded down $0.11 on Wednesday, reaching $19.15. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,446,041 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,206,137. The company has a quick ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17. Albertsons Companies has a 52 week low of $16.70 and a 52 week high of $23.20. The company has a market capitalization of $10.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.49. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $18.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $20.47.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 15th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.01. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 37.92% and a net margin of 1.18%.The company had revenue of $24.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.66 earnings per share. Albertsons Companies's revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Albertsons Companies will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACI. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Albertsons Companies by 340.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,919 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 1,483 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies during the first quarter valued at approximately $206,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 54.8% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,997 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 1,061 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 93.3% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 159,245 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,502,000 after buying an additional 76,859 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,044,000. 71.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.

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