Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Buys 1,294,848 Shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) by 21.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,465,449 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,294,848 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA’s holdings in Albertsons Companies were worth $146,621,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ACI. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 108.4% during 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 period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 225.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,385 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 959 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 10.0% in the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 13,192 shares of the company’s stock worth $244,000 after purchasing an additional 1,197 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 316.6% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,787 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 1,358 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 109,337 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,147,000 after buying an additional 1,498 shares during the period. 71.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

Shares of ACI stock opened at $21.95 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $12.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.33, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.47. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $17.00 and a fifty-two week high of $23.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.93. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $20.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.76.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $18.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.82 billion. Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 1.30% and a return on equity of 44.70%. The company’s revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.79 EPS. Analysts expect that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.73%. This is a boost from Albertsons Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ACI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group decreased their target price on Albertsons Companies from $27.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on Albertsons Companies in a research note on Friday, January 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $26.00 target price on the stock. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Albertsons Companies has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.