Merit Financial Group LLC Has $3.86 Million Stake in Public Storage $PSA

Key Points

• Merit Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Public Storage by 77.1% in Q2, now holding shares worth $3.86 million.
• Public Storage reported a net margin of 38.13% and beat earnings estimates with $4.28 EPS for the last quarter, while setting FY 2025 guidance between 16.450-17.00 EPS.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $3.00, yielding 4.1%, though it has a dividend payout ratio of 130.86%.

Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in Public Storage (NYSE:PSA - Free Report) by 77.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,146 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 5,722 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Public Storage were worth $3,857,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. increased its stake in shares of Public Storage by 1.6% in the first quarter. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. now owns 2,084 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $624,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Shum Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Public Storage by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Shum Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,089 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $625,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Whitener Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Public Storage by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Whitener Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,610 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $472,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in shares of Public Storage by 4.6% in the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 864 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $253,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Public Storage by 1.1% during the first quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 3,581 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,072,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. 78.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Public Storage Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:PSA opened at $290.69 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $286.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $291.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.77. The company has a market capitalization of $51.00 billion, a PE ratio of 31.70, a PEG ratio of 4.87 and a beta of 0.89. Public Storage has a 52 week low of $256.60 and a 52 week high of $355.87.

Public Storage (NYSE:PSA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $4.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.23 by $0.05. Public Storage had a net margin of 38.13% and a return on equity of 34.06%. The company had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.20 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $4.23 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. Public Storage has set its FY 2025 guidance at 16.450-17.00 EPS. Analysts forecast that Public Storage will post 16.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Public Storage Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th were issued a $3.00 dividend. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 15th. Public Storage's dividend payout ratio is 130.86%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BNP Paribas raised shares of Public Storage to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on Public Storage from $328.00 to $309.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Public Storage from $330.00 to $320.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Public Storage from $324.00 to $321.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 12th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on Public Storage in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $331.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $322.92.

Public Storage Profile

Public Storage, a member of the S&P 500 and FT Global 500, is a REIT that primarily acquires, develops, owns, and operates self-storage facilities. At December 31, 2023, we had: (i) interests in 3,044 self-storage facilities located in 40 states with approximately 218 million net rentable square feet in the United States and (ii) a 35% common equity interest in Shurgard Self Storage Limited (Euronext Brussels: SHUR), which owned 275 self-storage facilities located in seven Western European nations with approximately 15 million net rentable square feet operated under the Shurgard brand.

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