Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) Price Target Lowered to $16.00 at The Goldman Sachs Group

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) had its price objective reduced by investment analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $24.00 to $16.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s target price suggests a potential upside of 44.99% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on ACI. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Albertsons Companies from $20.00 to $14.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Albertsons Companies from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $23.00 to $12.00 in a research note on Friday. Weiss Ratings lowered Albertsons Companies from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Albertsons Companies from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $18.00 to $11.00 in a research report on Thursday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $16.38.

Albertsons Companies Trading Down 3.5%

Shares of Albertsons Companies stock traded down $0.41 during trading on Friday, hitting $11.04. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 11,856,979 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,568,150. The stock has a market cap of $5.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.42. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $14.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $16.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.58, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.20. Albertsons Companies has a 52 week low of $10.86 and a 52 week high of $20.47.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.12). The company 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 0.26% and a return on equity of 42.75%. The business’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.55 EPS. Albertsons Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.750-1.850 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Albertsons Companies will post 2.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Albertsons Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $388,089,000. Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 101.0% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,687,694 shares of the company’s stock worth $200,678,000 after purchasing an additional 5,873,759 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Albertsons Companies by 62.4% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,429,784 shares of the company’s stock valued at $230,595,000 after buying an additional 5,159,905 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 14.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 39,330,507 shares of the company’s stock worth $675,305,000 after acquiring an additional 5,110,777 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 113.0% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 4,749,331 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,546,000 after buying an additional 2,519,432 shares during the last quarter. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Albertsons Companies News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada kept an outperform rating on Albertsons Companies but still lowered its price target to $13 from $20, suggesting some analysts see limited upside despite the recent selloff. Benzinga source
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays lowered its target to $12 from $17 but kept the stock at only modest upside relative to the current share price, indicating the market may already be pricing in much of the bad news. Benzinga source
• Neutral Sentiment: Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a market perform rating and cut its target to $13 from $22, reflecting a more cautious stance after the results. Benzinga source
• Neutral Sentiment: Albertsons launched a new operating model and the ACI Edge initiative, aiming to improve efficiency and offset weaker grocery demand over time. Business Wire source
• Negative Sentiment: Albertsons reported first-quarter EPS of $0.42, missing estimates of $0.54, and cut FY2026 guidance after comparable grocery sales weakened, a key reason shares are falling. Business Wire source
• Negative Sentiment: The company warned that softer grocery demand and tighter consumer budgets are pressuring sales, even though digital and pharmacy growth helped partly offset the weakness. Fox Business source
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo downgraded Albertsons to equal weight and lowered its target to $11, while several media reports highlighted the sharp post-earnings decline and weaker outlook. Benzinga source

About Albertsons Companies

Albertsons Companies, Inc (NYSE: ACI) is one of the largest food and drug retailers in the United States, operating a diversified portfolio of grocery store banners. Founded in 1939 by Joe Albertson in Boise, Idaho, the company has grown through both organic expansion and strategic acquisitions. Its core business activities encompass the sale of fresh produce, meat, bakery items, deli offerings, pharmacy services, and general merchandise. The company’s retail operations are complemented by an in-house private-label program, featuring brands such as O Organics, Open Nature, and Lucerne, which cater to a range of customer preferences and price points.

Throughout its history, Albertsons Companies has pursued growth via mergers and partnerships.