Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) Short Interest Down 24.7% in February

Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) saw a significant drop in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 4,200,000 shares, a drop of 24.7% from the February 13th total of 5,580,000 shares. Approximately 1.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,480,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Insider Activity at Simon Property Group

In related news, Director Reuben S. Leibowitz acquired 465 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 30th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $168.59 per share, with a total value of $78,394.35. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 55,919 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,427,384.21. This trade represents a 0.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 8.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Simon Property Group

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SPG. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Simon Property Group in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its holdings in Simon Property Group by 328.2% in the 4th quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 167 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Simon Property Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Caisse Des Depots ET Consignations bought a new position in Simon Property Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in Simon Property Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.01% of the company’s stock.

Simon Property Group Stock Down 1.3 %

SPG stock opened at $164.70 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $176.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $174.47. The stock has a market cap of $53.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.69, a PEG ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 1.78. The company has a quick ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.19. Simon Property Group has a twelve month low of $139.25 and a twelve month high of $190.14.

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

Simon Property Group Announces Dividend

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 $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Simon Property Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 115.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on SPG shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised Simon Property Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $179.00 to $198.00 in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Simon Property Group in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $195.00 target price on the stock. Scotiabank set a $186.00 target price on Simon Property Group in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Simon Property Group from $158.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Simon Property Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 8th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $180.33.

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.