Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Short Interest Up 20.9% in November

Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 13,900,000 shares, an increase of 20.9% from the November 15th total of 11,500,000 shares. Approximately 3.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,240,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.3 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ACI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Albertsons Companies from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Melius raised shares of Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Albertsons Companies presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.09.

Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ACI opened at $19.50 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $11.30 billion, a PE ratio of 11.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.51. Albertsons Companies has a 1 year low of $17.00 and a 1 year high of $23.47. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $18.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $19.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.22.

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. Equities analysts anticipate that Albertsons Companies will post 2.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 28th were given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 28th. Albertsons Companies’s payout ratio is currently 28.07%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 7.8% during the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 46,670 shares of the company’s stock valued at $922,000 after buying an additional 3,366 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB boosted its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 166.2% during the 2nd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 214,192 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,230,000 after acquiring an additional 133,715 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 2,948.4% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 2,801 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its position in Albertsons Companies by 76.4% in the second quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 20,261 shares of the company’s stock worth $400,000 after purchasing an additional 8,775 shares during the last quarter. Finally, &PARTNERS purchased a new stake in Albertsons Companies during the second quarter valued at $360,000. 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.