The Goldman Sachs Group Reiterates “Buy” Rating for Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI)

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by equities research analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a $26.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 27.38% from the stock’s current price.

ACI has been the topic of several other reports. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $22.00 target price on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Melius raised shares of Albertsons Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, October 21st. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Albertsons Companies in a report on Friday, January 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $26.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on Albertsons Companies in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $22.00 price objective on the stock. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.21.

Albertsons Companies Stock Up 0.8 %

ACI opened at $20.41 on Tuesday. Albertsons Companies has a 12 month low of $17.00 and a 12 month high of $21.75. The company has a market cap of $11.83 billion, a PE ratio of 11.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31. The company has a 50 day moving average of $19.66 and a 200 day moving average of $19.35.

Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $18.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.82 billion. Albertsons Companies had a return on equity of 44.70% and a net margin of 1.30%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.79 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Albertsons Companies will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albertsons Companies

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Albertsons Companies by 108.4% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 1,346 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies by 225.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,385 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 959 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 76.8% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 4,181 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 1,816 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Albertsons Companies during the 4th quarter valued at about $179,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in Albertsons Companies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $185,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

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.