Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Shares Sold by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC lessened its stake in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI - Free Report) by 49.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 912,594 shares of the company's stock after selling 888,871 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned 0.16% of Albertsons Companies worth $17,924,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ACI. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $298,302,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 55.3% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,150,522 shares of the company's stock valued at $513,596,000 after purchasing an additional 9,308,940 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 36,310,122 shares of the company's stock worth $713,131,000 after purchasing an additional 2,347,875 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 21.0% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,465,449 shares of the company's stock worth $146,621,000 after purchasing an additional 1,294,848 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trium Capital LLP purchased a new position in Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $23,678,000. 71.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup initiated coverage on Albertsons Companies in a research report on Friday, January 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $26.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $26.00 price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price 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. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Albertsons Companies presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $23.36.

Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:ACI traded down $0.12 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $22.40. The stock had a trading volume of 6,832,138 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,359,636. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $17.00 and a twelve month high of $23.20. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $20.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.58, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.93.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.06. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 44.70% and a net margin of 1.30%. The firm had revenue of $18.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.54 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.68%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 25th. Albertsons Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.59%.

Albertsons Companies 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.