Bank of Nova Scotia Has $293,000 Holdings in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

Key Points

• Bank of Nova Scotia significantly reduced its stake in Albertsons Companies, selling 508,918 shares and decreasing its holding by 97.4%, leaving it with just 13,318 shares valued at approximately $293,000.
• Institutional investors currently hold 71.35% of Albertsons Companies stock, with notable increases from firms such as LPL Financial LLC and Wells Fargo & Company during the last quarter.
• Albertsons recently reported earnings of $0.55 per share, exceeding analyst expectations and revealing a revenue increase of 2.5% year-over-year.

Bank of Nova Scotia lowered its holdings in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI - Free Report) by 97.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,318 shares of the company's stock after selling 508,918 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia's holdings in Albertsons Companies were worth $293,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. WealthCollab LLC grew its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 446.0% in the 4th quarter. WealthCollab LLC now owns 1,780 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,454 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies in the first quarter worth approximately $40,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 340.1% in 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 in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 54.8% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,997 shares of the company's stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 1,061 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 100.0% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,370 shares of the company's stock worth $74,000 after purchasing an additional 1,685 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.35% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on ACI. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Albertsons Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Roth Capital restated a "buy" rating and set a $24.00 price target (up from $23.00) on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $23.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $24.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Albertsons Companies from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $19.00 to $25.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Albertsons Companies presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $24.06.

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 on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.46, for a total value of $1,015,122.38. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 162,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,488,730.74. The trade was a 22.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.35% of the company's stock.

Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Albertsons Companies stock traded up $0.12 on Tuesday, reaching $19.48. The stock had a trading volume of 3,927,718 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,152,448. The business's 50-day moving average price is $20.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $21.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a current ratio of 0.82. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $17.00 and a fifty-two week high of $23.20. The stock has a market cap of $10.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.46.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 15th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $24.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.66 earnings per share. Albertsons Companies's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 25th were paid a $0.15 dividend. 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 payout ratio is presently 36.59%.

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.