Short Interest in Extra Space Storage Inc. (NYSE:EXR) Rises By 44.2%

Extra Space Storage Inc. (NYSE:EXR) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,080,000 shares, an increase of 44.2% from the February 28th total of 2,830,000 shares. Currently, 2.0% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,330,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Joseph J. Bonner sold 672 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.10, for a total value of $100,195.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,557 shares in the company, valued at $679,448.70. This trade represents a 12.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP William N. Springer sold 1,220 shares of Extra Space Storage stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.66, for a total value of $186,245.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 20,158 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,077,320.28. This trade represents a 5.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,392 shares of company stock valued at $1,396,515 over the last 90 days. 1.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Extra Space Storage

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in Extra Space Storage in the third quarter worth $334,000. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Extra Space Storage by 39.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 14,426 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,599,000 after acquiring an additional 4,114 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Extra Space Storage by 3.1% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 147,115 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,509,000 after acquiring an additional 4,358 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. acquired a new position in Extra Space Storage in the third quarter worth about $257,000. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Extra Space Storage by 30.9% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 8,267 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,490,000 after buying an additional 1,953 shares in the last quarter. 99.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Extra Space Storage from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Extra Space Storage from $167.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Extra Space Storage in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Extra Space Storage from $167.00 to $163.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of Extra Space Storage from $184.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $171.09.

Extra Space Storage Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:EXR traded up $3.21 on Monday, reaching $148.67. The company had a trading volume of 1,355,009 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,051,669. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $152.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $159.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Extra Space Storage has a twelve month low of $131.02 and a twelve month high of $184.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.92, a P/E/G ratio of 7.76 and a beta of 0.90.

Extra Space Storage (NYSE:EXR) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.93. The firm had revenue of $821.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $707.34 million. Extra Space Storage had a net margin of 25.35% and a return on equity of 5.51%. On average, equities analysts expect that Extra Space Storage will post 8.1 EPS for the current year.

Extra Space Storage Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.36%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Extra Space Storage’s payout ratio is presently 160.40%.

About Extra Space Storage

Extra Space Storage Inc, headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, is a self-administered and self-managed REIT and a member of the S&P 500. As of December 31, 2023, the Company owned and/or operated 3,714 self-storage stores in 42 states and Washington, DC The Company's stores comprise approximately 2.6 million units and approximately 283.0 million square feet of rentable space operating under the Extra Space, Life Storage and Storage Express brands.