Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) Sets New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Shares of Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $187.10 and last traded at $186.24, with a volume of 1004082 shares. The stock had previously closed at $183.88.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho lifted their price target on Simon Property Group from $158.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Simon Property Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $175.00 to $205.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Simon Property Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $179.00 to $198.00 in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Simon Property Group in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $195.00 price target for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $175.10.

Simon Property Group Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $60.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.65, a PEG ratio of 9.58 and a beta of 1.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.19, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 2.00. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $175.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $171.12.

Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 74.02% and a net margin of 41.49%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Simon Property Group, Inc. will post 12.54 EPS for the current year.

Simon Property Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.51%. Simon Property Group’s dividend payout ratio is 115.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Reuben S. Leibowitz acquired 465 shares of Simon Property Group stock in a transaction on Monday, December 30th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $168.59 per share, with a total value of $78,394.35. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 55,919 shares in the company, valued at $9,427,384.21. This represents a 0.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 8.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Simon Property Group

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Simon Property Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $834,000. First Hawaiian Bank boosted its position in shares of Simon Property Group by 35.0% in the 4th quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 5,294 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $912,000 after purchasing an additional 1,372 shares during the last quarter. Red Cedar Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Simon Property Group by 153.2% in the third quarter. Red Cedar Investment Management LLC now owns 17,591 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,973,000 after purchasing an additional 10,644 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in Simon Property Group by 72.8% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 999 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $172,000 after buying an additional 421 shares during the period. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Simon Property Group during the fourth quarter worth about $416,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.01% of the company’s stock.

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.