Merit Financial Group LLC Has $794,000 Stock Position in Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (NYSE:ARE)

Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (NYSE:ARE - Free Report) by 268.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,587 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 6,255 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Alexandria Real Estate Equities were worth $794,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Sarasin & Partners LLP raised its holdings in shares of Alexandria Real Estate Equities by 6.0% in the 1st quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 45,256 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $4,187,000 after buying an additional 2,545 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Alexandria Real Estate Equities during the 1st quarter worth approximately $71,000. Czech National Bank grew its position in Alexandria Real Estate Equities by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 35,383 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $3,273,000 after acquiring an additional 1,659 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in Alexandria Real Estate Equities by 10.9% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 332,331 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $30,744,000 after acquiring an additional 32,608 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in Alexandria Real Estate Equities by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 11,845 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,096,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. 96.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alexandria Real Estate Equities Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of ARE stock traded down $0.13 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $73.20. The company had a trading volume of 1,563,150 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,313,478. The company has a 50 day moving average of $73.69 and a 200 day moving average of $90.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.21 and a quick ratio of 0.21. The firm has a market cap of $12.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 1.25. Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. has a 1-year low of $67.37 and a 1-year high of $130.14.

Alexandria Real Estate Equities (NYSE:ARE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $758.16 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $755.64 million. Alexandria Real Estate Equities had a return on equity of 1.43% and a net margin of 10.36%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.35 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. will post 9.32 EPS for the current year.

Alexandria Real Estate Equities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a $1.32 dividend. This represents a $5.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.21%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Alexandria Real Estate Equities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 694.74%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on ARE shares. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Alexandria Real Estate Equities in a research report on Monday, March 17th. They set a "hold" rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Alexandria Real Estate Equities from $117.00 to $95.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Alexandria Real Estate Equities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $130.00 price objective on shares of Alexandria Real Estate Equities in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alexandria Real Estate Equities presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $116.00.

About Alexandria Real Estate Equities

Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc NYSE: ARE, an S&P 500 company, is a best-in-class, mission-driven life science REIT making a positive and lasting impact on the world. As the pioneer of the life science real estate niche since our founding in 1994, Alexandria is the preeminent and longest-tenured owner, operator, and developer of collaborative life science, agtech, and advanced technology mega campuses in AAA innovation cluster locations, including Greater Boston, the San Francisco Bay Area, New York City, San Diego, Seattle, Maryland, and Research Triangle.