Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) Coverage Initiated at Citigroup

Equities research analysts at Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) in a research note issued to investors on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm set a “buy” rating and a $26.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup’s price target suggests a potential upside of 30.95% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on ACI. Bank of America began coverage on Albertsons Companies in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $22.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $22.00 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. UBS Group cut their target price on Albertsons Companies from $27.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $23.00.

Albertsons Companies Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of ACI stock opened at $19.86 on Friday. Albertsons Companies has a fifty-two week low of $17.00 and a fifty-two week high of $21.92. 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’s fifty day moving average is $19.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.15, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.51.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACI. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC raised its holdings 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 valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 700 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in Albertsons Companies by 76.8% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 4,181 shares of the company’s stock worth $77,000 after purchasing an additional 1,816 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Albertsons Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $179,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies in the third quarter valued at approximately $185,000. Finally, DGS Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies in the third quarter valued at approximately $199,000. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.