Albertsons Companies’ (ACI) Underperform Rating Reiterated at Bank of America

Bank of America restated their underperform rating on shares of Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) in a report issued on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has a $12.00 price objective on the stock, down from their previous price objective of $16.00.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the stock. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $12.00 price target (down from $20.00) on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $16.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $20.00 to $14.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $13.00 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Albertsons Companies from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $14.62.

Albertsons Companies Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of Albertsons Companies stock opened at $13.11 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.89, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.82. Albertsons Companies has a 52 week low of $10.86 and a 52 week high of $20.00. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $12.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $14.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.36 billion, a PE ratio of -119.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.40.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 13th. The company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.03. Albertsons Companies had a positive return on equity of 52.17% and a negative net margin of 0.06%. The firm had revenue of $18.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.30 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Albertsons Companies will post 1.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 6th. Investors of record on Friday, October 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 23rd. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.2%. Albertsons Companies’s payout ratio is presently -618.18%.

Insider Activity at Albertsons Companies

In related news, EVP Thomas M. Moriarty purchased 170,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $11.51 per share, with a total value of $1,962,455.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 308,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,555,968.46. This represents a 123.15% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Susan Morris acquired 39,409 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were bought at an average price of $11.42 per share, for a total transaction of $450,050.78. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 1,092,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,481,557.52. This represents a 3.74% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have purchased a total of 218,909 shares of company stock valued at $2,515,826 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Albertsons Companies

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 11.8% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 15,013,525 shares of the company’s stock valued at $255,855,000 after purchasing an additional 1,583,741 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in Albertsons Companies by 9.1% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,179,432 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,258,000 after purchasing an additional 430,101 shares in the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB grew its position in Albertsons Companies by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 2,036,014 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,694,000 after purchasing an additional 158,225 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in Albertsons Companies by 43.8% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,899,233 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,363,000 after purchasing an additional 578,401 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its stake in Albertsons Companies by 53.4% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 2,209,622 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,896,000 after buying an additional 769,503 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Albertsons Companies

Here are the key news stories impacting Albertsons Companies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: RBC raised its price target for Albertsons to $16, signaling improved potential upside from current trading levels. RBC raises target for Albertsons stock to USD 16.00
• Neutral Sentiment: Albertsons appointed Harmit Singh, Levi Strauss’ chief financial officer, to its board. The addition brings an experienced consumer and retail executive to the board, although the announcement did not include a change to financial expectations. Albertsons Appoints Harmit Singh to Board of Directors
• Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo maintained a Hold rating on ACI, indicating limited conviction that the stock will materially outperform or underperform in the near term. Wells Fargo Remains a Hold on Albertsons Companies
• Negative Sentiment: Albertsons paused its financial guidance while undertaking a multiyear business review. Same-store sales declined 0.8% in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, highlighting pressure on customer demand and increasing uncertainty around the company’s outlook. Albertsons: 3 Key Takeaways for Long-Term Investors
• Negative Sentiment: Bank of America reaffirmed its Underperform rating, reinforcing concerns about Albertsons’ operating performance and investment outlook. Bank of America Reaffirms Underperform Rating for Albertsons
• Negative Sentiment: Goldman Sachs downgraded ACI from Buy to Neutral with a $13 price target, while JPMorgan cut its rating from Overweight to Neutral with a $14 target. The downgrades suggest analysts see a more balanced risk-reward profile after recent weakness. JPMorgan Downgrades Albertsons to Neutral

Albertsons Companies Company Profile

Albertsons Companies, Inc is a U.S. food and drug retailer headquartered in Boise, Idaho. The company operates supermarkets, pharmacies and related retail businesses under banners including Albertsons, Safeway, Vons, Jewel-Osco, Shaw’s, ACME, Tom Thumb, Randalls, United Supermarkets, Pavilions, Carrs and Haggen.

Its stores offer groceries, fresh produce, meat and seafood, bakery and deli items, household products, health and beauty products, and pharmacy services. Albertsons also provides private-label products, fuel at select locations, grocery delivery and pickup, digital shopping tools, and customer loyalty programs.

The company’s history traces to 1939, when Joe Albertson opened the first Albertsons store in Boise.