Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

StockNews.com lowered shares of Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Saturday morning.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on SPG. Jefferies Financial Group raised Simon Property Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $179.00 to $198.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Piper Sandler raised Simon Property Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $175.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Mizuho boosted their price target on Simon Property Group from $158.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Simon Property Group in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “hold” rating and a $195.00 price objective on the stock. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Simon Property Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $178.44.

Simon Property Group Stock Performance

SPG opened at $170.97 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $178.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $174.50. Simon Property Group has a 1 year low of $139.25 and a 1 year high of $190.14. The company has a market capitalization of $55.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.55, a P/E/G ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 1.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.19, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 2.00.

Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $1.70. Simon Property Group had a return on equity of 74.02% and a net margin of 41.49%. Equities analysts expect that Simon Property Group will post 12.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Simon Property Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.91%. Simon Property Group’s payout ratio is 115.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Reuben S. Leibowitz acquired 465 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $168.59 per share, for a total transaction of $78,394.35. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 55,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,427,384.21. This trade represents a 0.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 8.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Simon Property Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pitcairn Co. increased its holdings in shares of Simon Property Group by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 9,895 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,704,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC increased its holdings in shares of Simon Property Group by 37.5% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 209 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Simon Property Group by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,689 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Simon Property Group by 9.9% in the fourth quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 655 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $113,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HighPoint Advisor Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Simon Property Group by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 3,396 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $626,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. 93.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Simon Property Group Company Profile

Simon Property Group, Inc (NYSE:SPG) is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT). Simon Property Group, L.P., or the Operating Partnership, is our majority-owned partnership subsidiary that owns all of our real estate properties and other assets. In this package, the terms Simon, we, our, or the Company refer to Simon Property Group, Inc, the Operating Partnership, and its subsidiaries.