Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 18,610,000 shares, a growth of 12.6% from the August 31st total of 16,530,000 shares. Currently, 4.6% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 3,150,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.9 days.

Albertsons Companies Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of Albertsons Companies stock traded down $0.01 on Friday, reaching $18.49. The stock had a trading volume of 2,841,633 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,022,267. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $19.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $20.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.67. Albertsons Companies has a 1 year low of $17.80 and a 1 year high of $23.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.49.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by ($0.01). Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 56.01% and a net margin of 1.41%. The company had revenue of $24.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.89 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Albertsons Companies will post 2.26 EPS for the current year.

Albertsons Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.60%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Albertsons Companies’s payout ratio is 21.52%.

Institutional Trading of Albertsons Companies

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Albertsons Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $687,000. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 35.5% during the 2nd quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 12,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $247,000 after acquiring an additional 3,274 shares during the period. MBB Public Markets I LLC acquired a new stake in Albertsons Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $440,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP lifted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 17.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 360,005 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,110,000 after acquiring an additional 52,832 shares during the period. Finally, Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C acquired a new stake in Albertsons Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $680,000. 71.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ACI shares. Melius Research assumed coverage on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $19.00 target price for the company. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $27.25 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.54.

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.