Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Invests $1.83 Million in Albertsons Companies, Inc. $ACI

Key Points

• Louisiana State Employees Retirement System initiated a new position in Albertsons Companies, buying 107,300 shares valued at about $1.83 million in the first quarter.
• Albertsons reported better-than-expected earnings of $0.48 per share on revenue of $20.25 billion, with revenue up 7.7% year over year. The company also set FY2026 guidance of $2.22 to $2.32 EPS.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.17 per share, implying an annualized yield of about 5.0%. Despite generally positive analyst coverage, Wall Street’s consensus rating remains Hold with a target price of $20.54.

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 107,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,828,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 14.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 39,330,507 shares of the company's stock worth $675,305,000 after buying an additional 5,110,777 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Albertsons Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $388,089,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Albertsons Companies by 62.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,429,784 shares of the company's stock valued at $230,595,000 after acquiring an additional 5,159,905 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 101.0% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,687,694 shares of the company's stock valued at $200,678,000 after acquiring an additional 5,873,759 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management raised its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 11,130,407 shares of the company's stock valued at $191,109,000 after acquiring an additional 183,900 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.35% of the company's stock.

Albertsons Companies Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of ACI opened at $13.52 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $6.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.40. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $13.16 and a 12-month high of $22.78. The company's 50-day moving average price is $15.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $16.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.58.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $20.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.49 billion. Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 0.26% and a return on equity of 42.75%. Albertsons Companies's revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.46 earnings per share. Albertsons Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.220-2.320 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 24th were issued a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 24th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. This is an increase from Albertsons Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Albertsons Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 212.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ACI. UBS Group lowered their target price on Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $21.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Monday, April 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $18.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Albertsons Companies from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $20.54.

Albertsons Companies Company Profile

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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