Park Avenue Securities LLC Lowers Position in Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG)

Park Avenue Securities LLC cut its stake in shares of Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,922 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 264 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in Simon Property Group were worth $2,113,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Simon Property Group by 963.3% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 319 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Simon Property Group in the second quarter valued at about $30,000. DNB Asset Management AS lifted its position in shares of Simon Property Group by 4.6% in the second quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 55,180 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $8,376,000 after acquiring an additional 2,438 shares in the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Simon Property Group by 2.3% in the second quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 11,429 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,606,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV purchased a new position in shares of Simon Property Group in the second quarter valued at about $221,000. 93.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Simon Property Group Stock Down 1.7 %

Simon Property Group stock traded down $2.63 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $152.91. 1,568,791 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,471,929. Simon Property Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $102.11 and a 12-month high of $158.50. The business has a fifty day moving average of $150.49 and a 200 day moving average of $148.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.20, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a current ratio of 2.19. The firm has a market cap of $49.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.48, a PEG ratio of 8.78 and a beta of 1.75.

Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.93 by ($1.42). Simon Property Group had a net margin of 46.49% and a return on equity of 78.50%. The business had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.88 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. This is a positive change from Simon Property Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.00. Simon Property Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 101.91%.

Insider Activity

In other Simon Property Group news, Director Reuben S. Leibowitz acquired 486 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 28th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $150.17 per share, for a total transaction of $72,982.62. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 55,001 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,259,500.17. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 8.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on SPG. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Simon Property Group from $152.00 to $157.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Simon Property Group from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 16th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Simon Property Group from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday. StockNews.com raised Simon Property Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Argus increased their price objective 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 issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Simon Property Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $153.50.

About Simon Property Group

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.