Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC Purchases Shares of 17,364 Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 17,364 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $341,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ACI. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $298,302,000. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 55.3% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,150,522 shares of the company's stock valued at $513,596,000 after buying an additional 9,308,940 shares during the last quarter. Dendur Capital LP acquired a new stake in Albertsons Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $49,100,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 36,310,122 shares of the company's stock valued at $713,131,000 after purchasing an additional 2,347,875 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Candlestick Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Albertsons Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $30,376,000. 71.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Omer Gajial sold 47,303 shares of Albertsons Companies stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.46, for a total transaction of $1,015,122.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 162,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,488,730.74. This trade represents a 22.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.26% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised Albertsons Companies from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price target for the company from $19.00 to $25.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on 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 reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $23.00 price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. 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, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.36.

Albertsons Companies Price Performance

Albertsons Companies stock traded down $0.31 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $21.74. The company's stock had a trading volume of 386,688 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,590,912. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $21.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $20.54. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $17.00 and a 52 week high of $23.20. The stock has a market cap of $12.51 billion, a PE ratio of 12.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $18.78 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.54 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.76%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 25th. Albertsons Companies's payout ratio 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.