River Road Asset Management LLC Cuts Stake in Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

River Road Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 308,220 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,395 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC owned 0.05% of Albertsons Companies worth $7,089,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of ACI. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 255.1% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,463 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 1,051 shares during the period. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd purchased a new position in Albertsons Companies in the second quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ACI has been the topic of several research reports. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Tigress Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Friday, January 12th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $24.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $27.25 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $24.85.

Albertsons Companies Trading Up 1.1 %

ACI opened at $20.44 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.50. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $20.95 and its 200-day moving average is $21.70. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $19.88 and a 52-week high of $23.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.09.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.35%. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.51%.

Albertsons Companies 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.