Hsbc Holdings PLC Sells 353,407 Shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. $ACI

Hsbc Holdings PLC cut its stake in shares of Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) by 71.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 139,637 shares of the company’s stock after selling 353,407 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Albertsons Companies were worth $2,401,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ACI. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Albertsons Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $388,089,000. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in Albertsons Companies by 101.0% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,687,694 shares of the company’s stock worth $200,678,000 after purchasing an additional 5,873,759 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Albertsons Companies by 62.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,429,784 shares of the company’s stock valued at $230,595,000 after purchasing an additional 5,159,905 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Albertsons Companies by 14.9% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of Albertsons Companies by 113.0% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 4,749,331 shares of the company’s stock worth $81,546,000 after buying an additional 2,519,432 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on ACI. Citigroup cut their price target on Albertsons Companies from $22.00 to $17.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 29th. 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 research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Albertsons Companies from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Albertsons Companies from $21.00 to $18.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Albertsons Companies from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.54.

Albertsons Companies Stock Performance

ACI stock opened at $14.72 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $16.58. Albertsons Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $13.16 and a one year high of $22.39. The firm has a market cap of $7.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.02, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.42. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $20.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.49 billion. Albertsons Companies had a net margin of 0.26% and a return on equity of 42.75%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.46 earnings per share. Albertsons Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.220-2.320 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Albertsons Companies, Inc. will post 2.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albertsons Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 24th were paid a $0.17 dividend. 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 4.6%. Albertsons Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 212.50%.

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.