Elgethun Capital Management Buys 14,995 Shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

Key Points

• Elgethun Capital Management increased its stake in Albertsons Companies by 8.4%, owning 192,662 shares valued at approximately $4.24 million as of the latest reporting period.
• Albertsons Companies reported earnings of $0.55 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, with revenues of $24.88 billion for the quarter.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 3.1%.

Elgethun Capital Management grew its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI - Free Report) by 8.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 192,662 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 14,995 shares during the period. Albertsons Companies comprises about 0.9% of Elgethun Capital Management's portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Elgethun Capital Management's holdings in Albertsons Companies were worth $4,237,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. FMR LLC increased its position in Albertsons Companies by 55.3% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,150,522 shares of the company's stock worth $513,596,000 after buying an additional 9,308,940 shares during the last quarter. Southeastern Asset Management Inc. TN lifted its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 108.0% in the fourth quarter. Southeastern Asset Management Inc. TN now owns 5,766,719 shares of the company's stock valued at $113,258,000 after buying an additional 2,993,988 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management lifted its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 52.9% in the first quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 7,873,039 shares of the company's stock valued at $173,128,000 after buying an additional 2,724,576 shares during the period. Dendur Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $49,100,000. Finally, Parsifal Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 19.4% in the fourth quarter. Parsifal Capital Management LP now owns 10,204,862 shares of the company's stock valued at $200,423,000 after buying an additional 1,657,981 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.35% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on ACI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Albertsons Companies from $31.00 to $29.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Monday, July 21st. They set an "underweight" rating and a $19.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Albertsons Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $23.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Roth Capital restated a "buy" rating and set a $24.00 price target (up previously from $23.00) on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Albertsons Companies currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $24.06.

Albertsons Companies Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE:ACI traded down $0.16 on Monday, hitting $19.56. 1,694,867 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,130,252. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.18. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $21.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $21.23. The company has a market cap of $10.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.46. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $17.00 and a 52 week high of $23.20.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.01. Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 1.18% and a return on equity of 37.92%. The business had revenue of $24.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.66 EPS. Albertsons Companies's quarterly revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 25th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 25th. Albertsons Companies's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.59%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Omer Gajial sold 47,303 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 162,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,488,730.74. This represents a 22.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.35% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.