Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the seventeen ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a hold recommendation and ten have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $21.3077.

ACI has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their target price on Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Weiss Ratings cut Albertsons Companies from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and set a $14.00 target price (down from $20.00) on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on Albertsons Companies from $26.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ACI. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 103.5% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,435 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 730 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 185.1% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,628 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 1,057 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 91.2% in the 4th quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,855 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 885 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 172.8% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 1,306 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 32.9% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,524 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 625 shares during the last quarter. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albertsons Companies Stock Up 0.2%

Albertsons Companies stock opened at $16.05 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $7.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.43. Albertsons Companies has a 52 week low of $15.80 and a 52 week high of $22.78. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $17.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $17.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.58.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $20.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.49 billion. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 42.75% and a net margin of 0.26%.Albertsons Companies’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.46 earnings per share. Albertsons Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.220-2.320 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Albertsons Companies will post 2.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 24th were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. This is a boost from Albertsons Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 24th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Albertsons Companies’s payout ratio is 212.50%.

Albertsons Companies Company Profile

Albertsons Companies, Inc (NYSE: ACI) is one of the largest food and drug retailers in the United States, operating a diversified portfolio of grocery store banners. Founded in 1939 by Joe Albertson in Boise, Idaho, the company has grown through both organic expansion and strategic acquisitions. Its core business activities encompass the sale of fresh produce, meat, bakery items, deli offerings, pharmacy services, and general merchandise. The company’s retail operations are complemented by an in-house private-label program, featuring brands such as O Organics, Open Nature, and Lucerne, which cater to a range of customer preferences and price points.

Throughout its history, Albertsons Companies has pursued growth via mergers and partnerships.