Investors Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI)

Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) saw unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Traders acquired 20,351 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 472% compared to the average volume of 3,559 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on ACI shares. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $27.25 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Roth Mkm raised Albertsons Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Roth Capital upgraded Albertsons Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $24.45.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Anuj Dhanda sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.35, for a total transaction of $2,035,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 365,297 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,433,793.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider Anuj Dhanda sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.35, for a total transaction of $2,035,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 365,297 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,433,793.95. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Robert Bruce Larson sold 24,362 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.24, for a total value of $493,086.88. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 50,241 shares in the company, valued at $1,016,877.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.26% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Albertsons Companies by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC now owns 23,401 shares of the company’s stock valued at $538,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp lifted its position in Albertsons Companies by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp now owns 112,648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,591,000 after acquiring an additional 648 shares during the period. Gladius Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 13,249 shares of the company’s stock worth $305,000 after acquiring an additional 690 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 1.7% in the first quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 51,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,094,000 after purchasing an additional 864 shares during the period. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 0.5% during the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 182,956 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,162,000 after purchasing an additional 930 shares in the last quarter. 71.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Albertsons Companies Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:ACI traded down $0.02 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $19.87. 1,651,438 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,944,680. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $20.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $21.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.89, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.18. Albertsons Companies has a 12-month low of $19.47 and a 12-month high of $23.88.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 68.02% and a net margin of 1.64%. The company had revenue of $18.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.40 billion. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Albertsons Companies will post 2.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th were given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 25th. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.52%.

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.