Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Boosts Stock Holdings in Simon Property Group, Inc. $SPG

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG - Free Report) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 937,887 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 40,553 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.29% of Simon Property Group worth $172,543,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SPG. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Simon Property Group by 634.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,370,089 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,383,145,000 after buying an additional 6,366,711 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in shares of Simon Property Group by 45.0% in the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 8,384,133 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,573,450,000 after acquiring an additional 2,600,508 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Simon Property Group by 1.8% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,683,502 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $8,761,093,000 after acquiring an additional 844,190 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Simon Property Group by 78.9% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,103,843 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $207,158,000 after acquiring an additional 486,967 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Simon Property Group by 93.2% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 680,102 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $126,336,000 after acquiring an additional 328,116 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.01% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SPG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Mizuho set a $192.00 price objective on Simon Property Group in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Scotiabank raised their target price on Simon Property Group from $189.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Simon Property Group from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Simon Property Group from $198.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Simon Property Group from $185.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $200.14.

Simon Property Group Stock Performance

Shares of SPG opened at $205.71 on Thursday. Simon Property Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $155.44 and a 1 year high of $208.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.42, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $195.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $188.99. The firm has a market cap of $66.84 billion, a PE ratio of 14.51, a PEG ratio of 6.65 and a beta of 1.33.

Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The real estate investment trust reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.02. Simon Property Group had a return on equity of 124.12% and a net margin of 72.71%.The company had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.68 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Simon Property Group, Inc. will post 13.19 EPS for the current year.

Simon Property Group declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, February 5th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the real estate investment trust to buy up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Simon Property Group Profile

Simon Property Group, Inc NYSE: SPG is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, develops and manages retail real estate properties. Its core business activities include acquisition, development, leasing and property management of regional malls, outlet centers and mixed‑use retail destinations. The company operates retail brands that include high‑profile regional shopping centers and the Premium Outlets platform, and it provides services such as tenant leasing, marketing, property operations and capital projects to optimize asset performance.

Simon's portfolio spans a broad mix of enclosed malls, open‑air centers, outlet properties and mixed‑use developments, and the company pursues redevelopment and repositioning to adapt properties to changing consumer and retail trends.

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