Nuveen LLC Buys New Position in UMH Properties, Inc. $UMH

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired a new stake in UMH Properties, Inc., purchasing 1,027,230 shares valued at approximately $19.2 million, which represents ownership of 1.22% of the company.
• UMH Properties has recently undergone analyst ratings adjustments, including a downgrade from Maxim Group and a mix of upgrades, setting the average target price at $20.25.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.225 per share with a yield of 5.7%, while insiders have recently sold a total of 146,549 shares worth over $2.4 million.

Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of UMH Properties, Inc. (NYSE:UMH - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 1,027,230 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $19,209,000. Nuveen LLC owned 1.22% of UMH Properties at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in UMH. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in shares of UMH Properties during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. KBC Group NV bought a new stake in shares of UMH Properties during the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of UMH Properties by 861.1% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,951 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 1,748 shares during the period. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of UMH Properties during the first quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in shares of UMH Properties by 374.7% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,568 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 2,027 shares in the last quarter. 75.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

UMH Properties Trading Down 1.4%

UMH stock traded down $0.2320 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $15.7780. The company had a trading volume of 434,563 shares, compared to its average volume of 494,452. The company has a current ratio of 8.56, a quick ratio of 8.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. UMH Properties, Inc. has a 52 week low of $15.46 and a 52 week high of $20.64. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $16.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $17.25. The stock has a market cap of $1.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 112.70, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.13.

UMH Properties (NYSE:UMH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.25 by ($0.02). UMH Properties had a net margin of 12.18% and a return on equity of 5.19%. The company had revenue of $66.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $66.07 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that UMH Properties, Inc. will post 0.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UMH Properties Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $0.225 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.7%. UMH Properties's payout ratio is presently 642.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on UMH. B. Riley reissued a "buy" rating on shares of UMH Properties in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Wall Street Zen lowered UMH Properties from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Maxim Group cut their price objective on UMH Properties from $22.00 to $20.50 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Wedbush raised UMH Properties to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $20.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director William Edward Mitchell sold 75,849 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.32, for a total transaction of $1,237,855.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 41,368 shares in the company, valued at $675,125.76. This represents a 64.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Samuel A. Landy sold 45,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.40, for a total value of $749,480.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,101,283 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,061,041.20. This represents a 3.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 146,549 shares of company stock valued at $2,409,086. 8.77% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About UMH Properties

UMH Properties, Inc, which was organized in 1968, is a public equity REIT that owns and operates 135 manufactured home communities containing approximately 25,800 developed homesites. These communities are located in New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Indiana, Michigan, Maryland, Alabama, South Carolina and Georgia.