Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Trims Holdings in Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund decreased its holdings in Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) by 7.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,755 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 868 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Simon Property Group were worth $1,683,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of SPG. Clearstead Trust LLC acquired a new position in Simon Property Group in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in Simon Property Group in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. grew its stake in shares of Simon Property Group by 3,200.0% during the 4th quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 198 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Simon Property Group during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Finally, BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Simon Property Group during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.01% of the company’s stock.

Simon Property Group Stock Up 2.1 %

SPG traded up $3.14 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $152.45. 1,032,436 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,326,743. The company has a market cap of $49.69 billion, a PE ratio of 19.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.86 and a beta of 1.75. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $149.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $147.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.20, a current ratio of 2.19 and a quick ratio of 2.19. Simon Property Group, Inc. has a one year low of $102.11 and a one year high of $158.50.

Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80 by ($0.55). Simon Property Group had a net margin of 46.49% and a return on equity of 78.50%. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.74 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Simon Property Group, Inc. will post 12.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Simon Property Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th were paid a dividend of $2.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 7th. This represents a $8.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.25%. This is an increase from Simon Property Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.95. Simon Property Group’s payout ratio is currently 101.91%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Simon Property Group news, Director Reuben S. Leibowitz purchased 486 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 28th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $150.17 per share, for a total transaction of $72,982.62. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 55,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,259,500.17. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 8.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Simon Property Group from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 16th. StockNews.com upgraded Simon Property Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Argus increased their price target on Simon Property Group from $157.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.89.

Simon Property Group Company Profile

Simon is a real estate investment trust engaged in the ownership of premier shopping, dining, entertainment and mixed-use destinations and an S&P 100 company (Simon Property Group, NYSE: SPG). Our properties across North America, Europe and Asia provide community gathering places for millions of people every day and generate billions in annual sales.