Zacks Research Upgrades Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) to “Hold”

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) was upgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Monday, Zacks reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on ACI. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $13.00 price target (down from $22.00) on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $20.00 to $13.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 24th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $12.00 price objective (down from $20.00) on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $11.00 target price (down from $17.00) on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Albertsons Companies from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $18.00 to $11.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Albertsons Companies currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $15.31.

Albertsons Companies Price Performance

Shares of ACI opened at $12.10 on Monday. Albertsons Companies has a twelve month low of $10.86 and a twelve month high of $20.00. The company has a market capitalization of $5.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 151.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.37. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $12.47 and a 200 day moving average of $14.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.22.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $24.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.84 billion. Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 0.08% and a return on equity of 45.59%. The business’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.55 earnings per share. Albertsons Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.750-1.850 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Albertsons Companies will post 1.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Susan Morris acquired 39,409 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was bought at an average price of $11.42 per share, with a total value of $450,050.78. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,092,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,481,557.52. The trade was a 3.74% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Sharon Mccollam acquired 9,000 shares of Albertsons Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $11.48 per share, with a total value of $103,320.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 567,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,509,745.48. The trade was a 1.61% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have bought 218,909 shares of company stock valued at $2,515,826 in the last ninety days. 1.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ACI. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 2,707.5% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 123,867 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,111,000 after acquiring an additional 119,455 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $388,089,000. Strategic Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,858,000. III Capital Management boosted its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 78.9% in the fourth quarter. III Capital Management now owns 215,370 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,698,000 after acquiring an additional 95,000 shares during the period. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies in the second quarter worth about $3,910,000. Institutional investors own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

Albertsons Companies Company Profile

Albertsons Companies, Inc is a food and drug retailer that operates supermarkets, pharmacies and related omnichannel grocery businesses in the United States. Its stores offer fresh produce, meat and seafood, bakery and deli products, packaged groceries, household goods, health and beauty products, and pharmacy services. The company also provides online ordering, grocery delivery and pickup services through its digital platforms.

Albertsons Companies operates under a portfolio of well-known banners, including Albertsons, Safeway, Vons, Jewel-Osco, Shaw’s, ACME, Tom Thumb, Randalls, United Supermarkets, Market Street, Pavilions, Carrs and Haggen.