Shell Asset Management Co. Acquires 2,222 Shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

Shell Asset Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) by 17.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 15,136 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,222 shares during the period. Shell Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Albertsons Companies were worth $297,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACI. Private Management Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 2,196,484 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,138,000 after buying an additional 43,532 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $11,800,000. NINE MASTS CAPITAL Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $746,000. ORBA Wealth Advisors L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $433,000. Finally, Econ Financial Services Corp purchased a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $499,000. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

ACI opened at $22.10 on Monday. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.00 and a 12-month high of $23.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.72 billion, a PE ratio of 12.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.47. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $21.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $20.50.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $18.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.78 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.54 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 25th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 25th. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ACI. Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Albertsons Companies from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $19.00 to $25.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $24.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Omer Gajial sold 47,303 shares of Albertsons Companies stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 162,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,488,730.74. The trade was a 22.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.