Private Management Group Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

Private Management Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI - Free Report) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,196,484 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 43,532 shares during the period. Albertsons Companies comprises 1.6% of Private Management Group Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 9th largest position. Private Management Group Inc. owned approximately 0.38% of Albertsons Companies worth $43,138,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 88.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 16,841,582 shares of the company's stock worth $311,232,000 after purchasing an additional 7,887,688 shares during the last quarter. Parsifal Capital Management LP lifted its position in Albertsons Companies by 22.8% during the 3rd quarter. Parsifal Capital Management LP now owns 8,546,881 shares of the company's stock worth $157,946,000 after buying an additional 1,585,899 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 25.1% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,170,601 shares of the company's stock worth $114,033,000 after buying an additional 1,239,978 shares during the last quarter. Trium Capital LLP bought a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $23,678,000. Finally, Anson Funds Management LP increased its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 973.0% in the third quarter. Anson Funds Management LP now owns 1,190,165 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,994,000 after acquiring an additional 1,079,246 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.35% of the company's stock.

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Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ACI traded up $0.26 during trading on Friday, reaching $20.89. 4,006,140 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,261,776. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $17.00 and a 12 month high of $21.75. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $19.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $19.36. 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 cap of $12.10 billion, a PE ratio of 11.74, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.51.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $18.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.82 billion. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 44.70% and a net margin of 1.30%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.79 EPS. Research analysts expect that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.87%. This is a positive change from Albertsons Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. Albertsons Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $26.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $22.00 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Friday, January 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $26.00 price target for the company. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $27.00 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $23.21.

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.