Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts collectively rate Albertsons “Hold.” Of 17 analysts, eight recommend holding, five recommend buying and four recommend selling; the average one-year price target is $15.31.
• Recent broker updates were mixed but generally lowered expectations: JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs and UBS cut their targets, while Wells Fargo downgraded the stock to “equal weight.”
• Albertsons missed quarterly EPS estimates, reporting $0.42 versus the expected $0.54, while revenue reached $24.94 billion. The company paid a quarterly dividend of $0.17, equivalent to a 5.4% annualized yield, and insiders recently purchased shares.

Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the seventeen analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have given a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $15.3077.

Several research analysts recently issued reports on ACI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Albertsons Companies from $20.00 to $14.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $16.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Albertsons Companies from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $18.00 to $11.00 in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $12.00 target price (down from $20.00) on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th.

Albertsons Companies Price Performance

Shares of ACI opened at $12.53 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $12.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.22. Albertsons Companies has a twelve month low of $10.86 and a twelve month high of $20.00. The company has a market cap of $6.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 156.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.37.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.54 by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $24.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.84 billion. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 45.59% and a net margin of 0.08%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.55 earnings per share. Albertsons Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.750-1.850 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Albertsons Companies will post 1.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 7th. Investors of record on Friday, July 24th were given a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 24th. Albertsons Companies's dividend payout ratio is presently 850.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Sharon Mccollam acquired 9,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 31st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $11.48 per share, with a total value of $103,320.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 567,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,509,745.48. This trade represents a 1.61% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Susan Morris acquired 39,409 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $11.42 per share, for a total transaction of $450,050.78. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,092,956 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,481,557.52. This trade represents a 3.74% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders bought 218,909 shares of company stock worth $2,515,826 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ACI. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 109.5% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,542,468 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,919,000 after acquiring an additional 806,336 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Albertsons Companies during the 1st quarter worth about $1,090,000. M&T Bank Corp raised its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 21.4% during the 2nd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 14,364 shares of the company's stock valued at $308,000 after buying an additional 2,528 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 39.3% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 504,944 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,861,000 after buying an additional 142,457 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 14,041 shares of the company's stock valued at $302,000 after buying an additional 723 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.35% of the company's stock.

About Albertsons Companies

Albertsons Companies, Inc NYSE: ACI is one of the largest food and drug retailers in the United States, operating a diversified portfolio of grocery store banners. Founded in 1939 by Joe Albertson in Boise, Idaho, the company has grown through both organic expansion and strategic acquisitions. Its core business activities encompass the sale of fresh produce, meat, bakery items, deli offerings, pharmacy services, and general merchandise. The company's retail operations are complemented by an in-house private-label program, featuring brands such as O Organics, Open Nature, and Lucerne, which cater to a range of customer preferences and price points.

Throughout its history, Albertsons Companies has pursued growth via mergers and partnerships.

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