Vanguard Group Inc. Has $821.87 Million Holdings in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Albertsons Companies by 2.9%, now owning 37,374,669 shares, which accounts for approximately 6.49% of the company's stock, valued at $821.87 million.
• Several institutional investors, including PNC Financial Services and LSV Asset Management, have bolstered their positions, with hedge funds owning a substantial 71.35% of the company's stock.
• Albertsons recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, representing an annualized yield of 3.1%, with a payout ratio of 36.59%.

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI - Free Report) by 2.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 37,374,669 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 1,064,547 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 6.49% of Albertsons Companies worth $821,869,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. WealthCollab LLC lifted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 446.0% in the fourth quarter. WealthCollab LLC now owns 1,780 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 1,454 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. bought a new stake in Albertsons Companies in the first quarter valued at $40,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 340.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,919 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 1,483 shares during the last quarter. 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 last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased 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 valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 1,685 shares during the period. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ACI. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $24.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Barclays began coverage on Albertsons Companies in a report on Monday, July 21st. They set an "underweight" rating and a $19.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group raised Albertsons Companies from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $22.00 to $27.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Albertsons Companies from $31.00 to $29.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Albertsons Companies has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $24.06.

Albertsons Companies Trading Up 0.7%

ACI traded up $0.13 during trading on Friday, reaching $19.19. The company had a trading volume of 4,478,584 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,052,325. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $20.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $21.19. The company has a market cap of $10.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.70, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.46. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.00 and a 12-month high of $23.20. 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 (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $24.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $24.68 billion. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 37.92% and a net margin of 1.18%. Albertsons Companies's revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.66 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Friday, July 25th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 25th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Albertsons Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.59%.

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.