On July 27, 2026, investment firm Citigroup downgrades its investment rating on Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE: ACI) from a Buy to a Neutral. Albertsons is one of the largest food and drug retailers in the United States. The company operates grocery stores, pharmacies, and growing digital platforms for online shopping and delivery.
The stock downgrade follows Albertsons' decision to cut its sales forecast for the fiscal year. As highlighted by PYMNTS, the company now projects a sales decrease between 1.5% and 0.5%. This is a sharp revision from its earlier forecast, which anticipated sales to be flat or increase by up to 1%.
This new outlook stems from weaker than expected first-quarter results. While revenues saw a small year-over-year increase, adjusted earnings missed analyst estimates and declined. As detailed by Zacks Investment Research, this prompted Albertsons to lower its guidance for sales, earnings, and EBITDA for the full fiscal year of 2026.
The company attributes the weakness to softer demand in its core grocery business and more cautious consumer spending trends. As reported by CNBC, these pressures are overshadowing strong performance in other areas. For instance, Albertsons’ digital sales are up by 13%, and its pharmacy business continues to show solid growth.
In response to the challenges, Albertsons is launching a new operating structure called ACI Edge to improve its performance. The company also lowered its net income guidance to a range of $1.75 to $1.85 per share. This is a significant reduction from its previous expectation of $2.22 to $2.32 per share.
