Woodline Partners LP Grows Stake in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

Woodline Partners LP raised its stake in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI - Free Report) by 21.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 902,017 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 162,018 shares during the quarter. Woodline Partners LP owned approximately 0.16% of Albertsons Companies worth $17,716,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 225.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,385 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 959 shares during the period. WealthCollab LLC raised its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 1,454 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 316.6% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,787 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,358 shares during the period. Ossiam bought a new stake in shares of Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $93,000. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 241,500.0% in the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 4,832 shares of the company's stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 4,830 shares during the period. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Albertsons Companies Price Performance

ACI stock opened at $22.04 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.21. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $17.00 and a one year high of $23.20. The stock has a market cap of $12.69 billion, a PE ratio of 12.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.47. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $20.54.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.06. Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 1.30% and a return on equity of 44.70%. The business had revenue of $18.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.78 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.54 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 25th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 25th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.72%. Albertsons Companies's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.59%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Omer Gajial sold 47,303 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 162,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,488,730.74. This trade represents a 22.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.26% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ACI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Tigress Financial upped their target price on shares of Albertsons Companies from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $23.00 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Friday, January 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $26.00 target price on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.36.

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.

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