UBS Group Cuts Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) Price Target to $24.00

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) had its target price lowered by UBS Group from $27.00 to $24.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. UBS Group’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 24.42% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Albertsons Companies from $24.00 to $19.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Friday, October 18th. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Monday, October 21st. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Albertsons Companies has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.75.

Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

ACI traded down $0.56 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $19.29. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,571,920 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,270,220. The stock has a market cap of $11.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.29, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $18.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58. Albertsons Companies has a twelve month low of $17.00 and a twelve month high of $23.47.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.03. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 49.50% and a net margin of 1.25%. The company had revenue of $18.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.60 EPS. Albertsons Companies’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Albertsons Companies will post 2.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ACI. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Albertsons Companies by 7.8% during the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 46,670 shares of the company’s stock worth $922,000 after purchasing an additional 3,366 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Albertsons Companies by 2,948.4% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 2,801 shares during the period. &PARTNERS acquired a new stake in shares of Albertsons Companies in the second quarter worth $360,000. Calamos Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 11.6% during the second quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 1,678,613 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,153,000 after buying an additional 174,349 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 38.7% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,426,264 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,669,000 after buying an additional 956,744 shares during the last quarter. 71.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.