Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Reduces Stock Position in Albertsons Companies, Inc. $ACI

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. reduced its position in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) by 85.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,556 shares of the company’s stock after selling 141,293 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Albertsons Companies were worth $422,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 18.8% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 384,761 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,606,000 after buying an additional 60,934 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $388,089,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new stake in Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $5,294,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 11.8% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 7,326 shares of the company’s stock worth $126,000 after buying an additional 774 shares during the period. Finally, Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $251,000. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on ACI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $21.00 price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Monday, April 6th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies from $26.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Albertsons Companies from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $21.31.

Albertsons Companies Price Performance

ACI stock opened at $16.35 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $16.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $17.16. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $15.36 and a 52-week high of $22.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.10, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.58, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.05. Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 0.26% and a return on equity of 42.75%. The firm had revenue of $20.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.49 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.46 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. Albertsons Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.220-2.320 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 24th were issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 24th. This is a positive change from Albertsons Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 212.50%.

Albertsons Companies Company Profile

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.