Short Interest in Federal Realty Investment Trust (NYSE:FRT) Drops By 5.7%

Federal Realty Investment Trust (NYSE:FRT) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,480,000 shares, a decrease of 5.7% from the November 30th total of 2,630,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 619,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.0 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FRT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Federal Realty Investment Trust by 3.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,885,992 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $561,743,000 after acquiring an additional 168,885 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Federal Realty Investment Trust by 8.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 93,306 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $10,727,000 after purchasing an additional 7,501 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its holdings in shares of Federal Realty Investment Trust by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 59,392 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $6,828,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Federal Realty Investment Trust by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 2,607 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Federal Realty Investment Trust during the third quarter worth $221,000. 93.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Federal Realty Investment Trust Stock Performance

NYSE:FRT traded up $1.03 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $111.95. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 544,102 shares, compared to its average volume of 624,179. Federal Realty Investment Trust has a fifty-two week low of $95.97 and a fifty-two week high of $118.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The firm has a market cap of $9.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.24. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $113.42 and its 200-day moving average is $111.46.

Federal Realty Investment Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be paid a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.93%. Federal Realty Investment Trust’s payout ratio is currently 127.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FRT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of Federal Realty Investment Trust from $119.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Compass Point upped their price target on Federal Realty Investment Trust from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. StockNews.com raised Federal Realty Investment Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Citigroup raised Federal Realty Investment Trust from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $120.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Federal Realty Investment Trust from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $122.00 to $125.00 in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.62.

Federal Realty Investment Trust Company Profile

Federal Realty is a recognized leader in the ownership, operation and redevelopment of high-quality retail-based properties located primarily in major coastal markets from Washington, DC to Boston as well as San Francisco and Los Angeles. Founded in 1962, Federal Realty's mission is to deliver long-term, sustainable growth through investing in communities where retail demand exceeds supply.