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Key Takeaways
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Albertsons is set to report fiscal 2024 third-quarter results Wednesday morning, its first report since the grocery chain's proposed merger with Kroger fell apart last month after months of legal challenges.
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All the analysts covering Albertsons tracked by Visible Alpha expect the stock to rise in the coming months. The analysts expect Q3 revenue to have risen year-over-year but profit to have fallen.
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The grocery chains called off their merger last month, and have since accused each other of violating their merger agreement.
Albertsons (ACI) is set to report fiscal 2024 third-quarter results Wednesday morning, its first report since the grocery chain's proposed merger with Kroger (KR) fell apart last month after months of legal challenges.
Of the seven analysts covering Albertsons tracked by Visible Alpha, three have "buy" ratings and four have "hold" ratings. The average price target of $23 suggests analysts expect the stock to make back the roughly 15% it lost last year, as all seven have a higher target than its Monday afternoon level of $19.71.
Albertsons is expected to report $18.81 billion in revenue for the quarter, up from $18.56 billion last year, according to Visible Alpha. Analysts also expect $318.1 million or $0.54 per share in net income, down from $361.4 million or $0.62 per share.
First Report Since Kroger Merger Called Off
This will be Albertsons' first report since its nearly $25 billion merger with Kroger was called off last month. A federal judge sided with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), blocking the merger on the grounds that it would likely lead to less competition in the grocery industry, meaning higher prices for consumers and slower wage growth for employees.
The retailers subsequently terminated their merger agreement, and have since started a new legal fight. Albertsons sued Kroger, accusing the larger retailer of not doing enough to resolve the concerns of regulators, seeking billions in damages. Kroger has said it "looks forward to responding to these baseless claims in court," and accused Albertsons of being the one to violate their merger agreement.
Both companies have launched new stock buyback programs after pausing them while trying to get the merger approved, and Albertsons CEO Vivek Sankaran said last month that the company would have "additional details" on its future plans "no later than" Wednesday's earnings call.
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