Telsey Advisory Group Upgrades Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) to Outperform

Telsey Advisory Group upgraded shares of Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) from a market perform rating to an outperform rating in a report issued on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have $26.00 price objective on the stock, up from their prior price objective of $21.00.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $22.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Melius Research raised shares of Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Tigress Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $19.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.75.

Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ACI opened at $19.41 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $18.96 and a 200 day moving average of $19.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.51. Albertsons Companies has a 12-month low of $17.00 and a 12-month high of $23.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.03. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 49.50% and a net margin of 1.25%. The business had revenue of $18.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.60 earnings per share. Albertsons Companies’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Albertsons Companies will post 2.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 28th were given a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 28th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.47%. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.07%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Swiss National Bank raised its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 1,117,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,646,000 after buying an additional 94,300 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 5.7% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 670,722 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,395,000 after purchasing an additional 36,154 shares in the last quarter. K2 Principal Fund L.P. raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 68.4% during the 3rd quarter. K2 Principal Fund L.P. now owns 270,501 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,999,000 after purchasing an additional 109,901 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC purchased a new position in Albertsons Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,906,000. Finally, Lubert Adler Management Company LP boosted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 47.1% in the 2nd quarter. Lubert Adler Management Company LP now owns 2,664,735 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,629,000 after buying an additional 852,857 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

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.