Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $18.51, but opened at $19.20. Albertsons Companies shares last traded at $18.68, with a volume of 6,949,791 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $19.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Melius raised Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group cut their price target on Albertsons Companies from $27.25 to $21.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.10.

Albertsons Companies Price Performance

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $18.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $19.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58. The firm has a market cap of $11.08 billion, a PE ratio of 11.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.51.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $18.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.47 billion. Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 1.25% and a return on equity of 49.50%. Albertsons Companies’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.60 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.13 EPS for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 28th were paid a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 28th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.51%. Albertsons Companies’s payout ratio is 28.07%.

Institutional Trading of Albertsons Companies

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in Albertsons Companies by 108.4% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,365 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,230 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 2,948.4% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 2,801 shares in the last quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Albertsons Companies in the second quarter worth about $126,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Albertsons Companies during the second quarter worth approximately $150,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC raised its position in Albertsons Companies by 2,243.9% during the second quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 8,977 shares of the company’s stock valued at $177,000 after purchasing an additional 8,594 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

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.