Norges Bank Invests $295.64 Million in Stag Industrial, Inc. $STAG

Key Points

• Norges Bank bought a new stake in Stag Industrial during the fourth quarter, purchasing 8.04 million shares valued at about $295.6 million. The position represented roughly 4.31% of the company.
• Several other institutional investors also increased their holdings, and overall hedge funds and other institutions now own 88.67% of Stag Industrial’s stock.
• Analysts currently have a mixed view on the REIT: the consensus rating is Hold with an average price target of $40, while the stock recently traded at $36.56. Stag Industrial also reported quarterly earnings and revenue that both beat expectations and announced a $0.3875 quarterly dividend.

Norges Bank purchased a new position in Stag Industrial, Inc. (NYSE:STAG - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 8,042,542 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $295,644,000. Norges Bank owned about 4.31% of Stag Industrial at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Stag Industrial by 1.5% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,539,842 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $347,261,000 after purchasing an additional 142,132 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in shares of Stag Industrial by 4.3% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,950,923 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $143,339,000 after purchasing an additional 162,887 shares during the last quarter. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC raised its stake in shares of Stag Industrial by 10.7% in the third quarter. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC now owns 3,911,540 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $138,038,000 after purchasing an additional 377,952 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Stag Industrial by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,830,915 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $140,851,000 after purchasing an additional 65,502 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Stag Industrial by 0.9% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,831,665 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $99,927,000 after purchasing an additional 25,059 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.67% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Stag Industrial from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings lowered Stag Industrial from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $44.00 price objective on shares of Stag Industrial in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Barclays cut their price objective on Stag Industrial from $39.00 to $38.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Stag Industrial from $41.00 to $40.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $40.00.

Stag Industrial Stock Performance

NYSE:STAG opened at $36.56 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $37.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.08. Stag Industrial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $33.72 and a 52-week high of $39.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.99 billion, a PE ratio of 28.34 and a beta of 0.98.

Stag Industrial (NYSE:STAG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $224.21 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $221.52 million. Stag Industrial had a return on equity of 6.80% and a net margin of 28.25%.Stag Industrial's revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.61 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Stag Industrial, Inc. will post 2.63 EPS for the current year.

Stag Industrial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a $0.3875 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.55 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Stag Industrial's dividend payout ratio is 120.16%.

About Stag Industrial

Stag Industrial, Inc is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in the acquisition, ownership and operation of single-tenant industrial properties throughout the United States. The company's portfolio is focused on free-standing warehouses, distribution centers and light manufacturing facilities designed to meet the logistical needs of a diverse tenant base. By concentrating on properties with straightforward layouts and minimal common-area maintenance, Stag Industrial seeks to deliver stable rental income and attractive risk-adjusted returns for its shareholders.

Since its founding in 2010 and initial public offering in 2011, Stag Industrial has pursued a disciplined investment strategy centered on high-quality, well-located assets.

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