Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Boosts Holdings in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI - Free Report) by 6.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,836,469 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 167,566 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 0.49% of Albertsons Companies worth $55,708,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 108.4% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 1,346 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in Albertsons Companies by 4.9% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 19,324 shares of the company's stock worth $357,000 after purchasing an additional 895 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its stake in Albertsons Companies by 225.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,385 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 959 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 10.0% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 13,192 shares of the company's stock valued at $244,000 after purchasing an additional 1,197 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 464,963 shares of the company's stock worth $9,132,000 after buying an additional 2,186 shares during the last quarter. 71.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on ACI. Citigroup assumed coverage on Albertsons Companies in a report on Friday, January 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $26.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $19.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $23.50.

Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

Shares of ACI traded up $0.89 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $21.97. 7,066,360 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,855,840. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $20.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $19.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.73 billion, a PE ratio of 12.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.50. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $17.00 and a 52-week high of $22.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.21.

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

Albertsons Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. This is an increase from Albertsons Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.73%. Albertsons Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently 33.71%.

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.