Friedenthal Financial Invests $935,000 in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 42,541 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $935,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new stake in shares of Albertsons Companies during the first quarter worth about $1,044,000. ORBA Wealth Advisors L.L.C. lifted its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 16.5% in the first quarter. ORBA Wealth Advisors L.L.C. now owns 25,702 shares of the company's stock worth $565,000 after acquiring an additional 3,647 shares during the period. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH lifted its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 1,050.7% in the first quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH now owns 653,929 shares of the company's stock worth $14,380,000 after acquiring an additional 597,101 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 93.3% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 159,245 shares of the company's stock worth $3,502,000 after acquiring an additional 76,859 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 54.8% in 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 period. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Albertsons Companies Price Performance

Shares of Albertsons Companies stock opened at $21.07 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.13 billion, a PE ratio of 12.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.46. The business's 50-day moving average price is $21.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $20.88. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $17.00 and a 12 month high of $23.20.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $18.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.78 billion. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 41.03% and a net margin of 1.19%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.54 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 25th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.85%. Albertsons Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.59%.

Insider Activity

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ACI has been the topic of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised Albertsons Companies from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $19.00 to $25.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Tigress Financial upped their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $26.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Friday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $23.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Albertsons Companies currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $24.36.

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.

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