River Road Asset Management LLC Sells 6,395 Shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)

River Road Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 308,220 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,395 shares during the quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Albertsons Companies were worth $7,089,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in Albertsons Companies by 11.5% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 117,977 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,713,000 after purchasing an additional 12,205 shares during the period. Strs Ohio boosted its position in Albertsons Companies by 33.4% during the fourth quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 84,084 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,933,000 after purchasing an additional 21,057 shares during the period. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in Albertsons Companies by 125.9% during the fourth quarter. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC now owns 20,095 shares of the company’s stock worth $462,000 after purchasing an additional 11,201 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. boosted its position in Albertsons Companies by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 689,187 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,851,000 after purchasing an additional 58,588 shares during the period. Finally, MRP Capital Investments LLC boosted its position in Albertsons Companies by 22.0% during the fourth quarter. MRP Capital Investments LLC now owns 47,620 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,095,000 after purchasing an additional 8,585 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

Albertsons Companies Price Performance

Shares of Albertsons Companies stock opened at $20.44 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.09, a quick ratio of 0.19 and a current ratio of 0.85. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.70. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $19.88 and a twelve month high of $23.88. The firm has a market cap of $11.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.50.

Albertsons Companies Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

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.