Hamlin Capital Management LLC Increases Position in Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG)

Key Points

• Hamlin Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Simon Property Group by 26.2%, acquiring an additional 166,439 shares, making it one of the largest positions in their portfolio.
• Simon Property Group recently raised its quarterly dividend from $2.10 to $2.15 per share, representing an annualized yield of 5.0%.
• Analysts have mixed views on Simon Property Group, with seven analysts rating the stock as "hold" and five giving it a "buy" rating, reflecting diverse outlooks on the company's market performance.

Hamlin Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG - Free Report) by 26.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 801,728 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 166,439 shares during the quarter. Simon Property Group accounts for approximately 3.2% of Hamlin Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Hamlin Capital Management LLC owned about 0.25% of Simon Property Group worth $133,151,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. raised its holdings in shares of Simon Property Group by 12.0% during the 1st quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 14,000 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,325,000 after buying an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its position in Simon Property Group by 11.6% during the first quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $252,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. raised its stake in shares of Simon Property Group by 54.4% during the first quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 7,744 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,286,000 after acquiring an additional 2,729 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Simon Property Group by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 9,712 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,613,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Finally, S Bank Fund Management Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Simon Property Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $532,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.01% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on SPG. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Simon Property Group from $182.00 to $169.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $179.00 target price on Simon Property Group and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Simon Property Group from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Barclays assumed coverage on Simon Property Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $170.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Simon Property Group from $159.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $182.64.

Simon Property Group Price Performance

SPG stock opened at $172.61 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.05, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.23. Simon Property Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $136.34 and a 1 year high of $190.13. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $162.85 and a 200 day moving average of $164.81. The company has a market cap of $56.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.68, a PEG ratio of 11.32 and a beta of 1.48.

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

Simon Property Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be paid a dividend of $2.15 per share. This is a positive change from Simon Property Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. This represents a $8.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 9th. Simon Property Group's payout ratio is 129.83%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Daniel C. Smith bought 378 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $159.29 per share, with a total value of $60,211.62. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 31,998 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,096,961.42. The trade was a 1.20% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Glyn Aeppel bought 234 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 30th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $159.29 per share, for a total transaction of $37,273.86. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 19,057 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,035,589.53. The trade was a 1.24% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders bought 2,386 shares of company stock valued at $380,066. 8.66% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Simon Property Group

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.

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