IFM Investors Pty Ltd Lowers Holdings in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd lowered its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) by 52.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 51,182 shares of the company’s stock after selling 57,138 shares during the quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd’s holdings in Albertsons Companies were worth $946,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in Albertsons Companies by 41.9% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 7,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $175,000 after purchasing an additional 2,250 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 43,304 shares of the company’s stock worth $928,000 after buying an additional 2,144 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 0.3% in the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 691,123 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,818,000 after acquiring an additional 1,936 shares during the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC grew its position in Albertsons Companies by 540,666.7% during the first quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 32,446 shares of the company’s stock valued at $696,000 after acquiring an additional 32,440 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Albertsons Companies by 21.7% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 35,943 shares of the company’s stock worth $771,000 after acquiring an additional 6,399 shares during the last quarter. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Melius upgraded Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, October 21st. Tigress Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Monday, October 21st. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and set a $27.25 price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.58.

Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:ACI opened at $18.41 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $18.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.67, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.21. The stock has a market cap of $10.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.26, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.48. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $17.80 and a 1-year high of $23.47.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.03. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 56.01% and a net margin of 1.41%. The firm had revenue of $18.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.60 EPS. Albertsons Companies’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 28th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.61%. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.52%.

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.