Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Sells 11,500 Shares of Simon Property Group, Inc. $SPG

Key Points

• The Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund reduced its stake in Simon Property Group, Inc. by 16.4%, selling 11,500 shares and leaving it with a total of 58,517 shares valued at approximately $9.72 million.
• Multiple institutional investors, including Park Square Financial Group and Richardson Financial Services, increased their holdings in Simon Property Group significantly, indicating growing confidence among some shareholders.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase to $2.15 per share, reflecting a strong annual yield of 5.0% and a dividend payout ratio of 129.83%.

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund lessened its position in Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG - Free Report) by 16.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 58,517 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 11,500 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund's holdings in Simon Property Group were worth $9,719,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in SPG. Park Square Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Simon Property Group by 108.0% during the 1st quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC now owns 156 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Simon Property Group by 185.0% in the first quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 171 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its position in Simon Property Group by 421.6% in the first quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 193 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC grew its holdings in shares of Simon Property Group by 37.5% during the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 209 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc grew its holdings in shares of Simon Property Group by 77.2% during the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 218 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.01% of the company's stock.

Simon Property Group Trading Up 0.6%

SPG stock traded up $0.99 during trading on Friday, reaching $173.18. 1,581,618 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,525,658. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.05. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $163.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $164.62. Simon Property Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $136.34 and a 1 year high of $190.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.77, a P/E/G ratio of 11.59 and a beta of 1.48.

Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.04 by $0.01. Simon Property Group had a net margin of 36.78% and a return on equity of 72.38%. The business had revenue of $1.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.40 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.90 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Simon Property Group, Inc. will post 12.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Simon Property Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be issued a $2.15 dividend. This represents a $8.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 9th. This is a positive change from Simon Property Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. Simon Property Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 129.83%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Reuben S. Leibowitz purchased 522 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $159.29 per share, with a total value of $83,149.38. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 58,195 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,269,881.55. This trade represents a 0.91% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel C. Smith bought 378 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $159.29 per share, for a total transaction of $60,211.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 31,998 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,096,961.42. The trade was a 1.20% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 2,428 shares of company stock worth $387,271. 8.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on SPG. Barclays began coverage on Simon Property Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $170.00 target price on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH began coverage on Simon Property Group in a report on Friday, July 18th. They set a "buy" rating and a $225.00 price target for the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $179.00 price objective on Simon Property Group and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Scotiabank upped their price target on Simon Property Group from $159.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on Simon Property Group from $182.00 to $169.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $182.64.

Simon Property Group 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.