Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) Stock Price Down 2.8%

Shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) dropped 2.8% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $19.50 and last traded at $19.55. Approximately 306,382 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 2,871,160 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.12.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $27.25 price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $24.45.

Albertsons Companies Stock Down 2.5 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.88. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $19.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $20.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.36 billion, a PE ratio of 8.80, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.49.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.67 by ($0.01). Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 1.41% and a return on equity of 56.01%. The firm had revenue of $24.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were given a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. Albertsons Companies’s payout ratio is presently 21.52%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Albertsons Companies by 40.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,404,574 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,305,000 after acquiring an additional 692,188 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 109.7% during the 1st quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 57,054 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,223,000 after purchasing an additional 29,849 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Albertsons Companies by 40.1% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 189,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,054,000 after purchasing an additional 54,130 shares in the last quarter. Privium Fund Management UK Ltd purchased a new position in Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,247,000. Finally, Swedbank AB grew its stake in Albertsons Companies by 166.2% in the second quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 214,192 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,230,000 after purchasing an additional 133,715 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

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.