Lazard Asset Management LLC Trims Stake in Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS)

Lazard Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS - Free Report) by 59.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 25,871 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 38,068 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned 0.11% of Saul Centers worth $1,002,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. increased its position in Saul Centers by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 7,113 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $276,000 after acquiring an additional 449 shares during the period. Citadel Advisors LLC increased its position in Saul Centers by 84.6% in the 4th quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 38,421 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,491,000 after acquiring an additional 17,613 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC acquired a new position in Saul Centers in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,549,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in Saul Centers by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 22,029 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $855,000 after acquiring an additional 409 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Saul Centers by 27.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 140,411 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $5,448,000 after acquiring an additional 29,951 shares during the period. 49.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Saul Centers Stock Performance

Shares of BFS stock opened at $34.35 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $831.30 million, a PE ratio of 18.67 and a beta of 1.08. Saul Centers, Inc. has a 52-week low of $31.25 and a 52-week high of $42.39. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $34.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $36.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.61.

Saul Centers (NYSE:BFS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.73 by ($0.02). Saul Centers had a return on equity of 17.16% and a net margin of 20.84%. The business had revenue of $70.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $69.76 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Saul Centers, Inc. will post 3.14 EPS for the current year.

Saul Centers Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th were given a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.87%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 15th. Saul Centers's payout ratio is 160.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Saul Centers news, CEO B Francis Saul II bought 7,179 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $33.59 per share, for a total transaction of $241,142.61. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 214,576 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,207,607.84. This trade represents a 3.46% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 56.57% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com cut Saul Centers from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th.

Saul Centers Company Profile

Saul Centers is a self-managed, self-administered equity REIT headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland. Saul Centers currently operates and manages a real estate portfolio comprised of 61 properties that includes (a) 57 community and neighborhood Shopping Centers and Mixed-Use properties with approximately 9.8 million square feet of leasable area and (b) four land and development properties.

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