River Road Asset Management LLC Takes Position in Albertsons Companies, Inc. $ACI

River Road Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 370,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,366,000. River Road Asset Management LLC owned 0.07% of Albertsons Companies at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of ACI. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 14.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 39,330,507 shares of the company’s stock valued at $675,305,000 after purchasing an additional 5,110,777 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Albertsons Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $388,089,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Albertsons Companies by 62.4% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,429,784 shares of the company’s stock worth $230,595,000 after purchasing an additional 5,159,905 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 101.0% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,687,694 shares of the company’s stock valued at $200,678,000 after purchasing an additional 5,873,759 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management boosted its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 11,130,407 shares of the company’s stock valued at $191,109,000 after purchasing an additional 183,900 shares during the last quarter. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Albertsons Companies Price Performance

ACI opened at $13.44 on Friday. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $13.41 and a 52-week high of $22.78. The company has a 50 day moving average of $16.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $16.95. The company has a market cap of $6.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.58.

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

Albertsons Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 24th were given a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.1%. This is a boost from Albertsons Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 24th. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 212.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on ACI. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $26.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $21.00 price target on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Monday, April 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Albertsons Companies from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded 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 assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.31.

Albertsons Companies 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.