Stevens Capital Management LP Takes $209,000 Position in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

Stevens Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 10,622 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $209,000.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 19.8% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 108,146 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,999,000 after acquiring an additional 17,902 shares during the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. increased its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 494.0% in the third quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 440,494 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,140,000 after purchasing an additional 366,331 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 134.6% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 23,966 shares of the company’s stock valued at $443,000 after buying an additional 13,749 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 4.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,668,903 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,321,000 after buying an additional 118,855 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 13.2% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 27,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $508,000 after buying an additional 3,200 shares during the period. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albertsons Companies Price Performance

Shares of ACI opened at $20.79 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $17.00 and a twelve month high of $22.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a 50 day moving average of $20.65 and a 200-day moving average of $19.57.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.07. Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 1.30% and a return on equity of 44.70%. The business had revenue of $18.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.82 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.79 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. This is a positive change from Albertsons Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ACI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group reduced 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. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $22.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Albertsons Companies from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on Albertsons Companies in a report on Friday, January 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $26.00 price target for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $23.50.

About Albertsons Companies

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.