Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $24.14 Million Stock Holdings in Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS - Free Report) by 1.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 669,115 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 7,955 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 2.76% of Saul Centers worth $24,135,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in Saul Centers by 1,249.5% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,336 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 1,237 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Saul Centers by 12.7% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,418 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of Saul Centers in the 4th quarter worth approximately $105,000. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Saul Centers in the 4th quarter worth approximately $179,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in shares of Saul Centers in the 4th quarter worth approximately $208,000. 49.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Saul Centers

In other news, CEO B Francis Saul II acquired 7,179 shares of Saul Centers stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $33.59 per share, with a total value of $241,142.61. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 214,576 shares in the company, valued at $7,207,607.84. This represents a 3.46% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders acquired 10,210 shares of company stock worth $341,786. 56.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Saul Centers Price Performance

Shares of BFS traded up $0.38 on Thursday, hitting $34.95. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,382 shares, compared to its average volume of 51,177. The company has a market capitalization of $845.82 million, a PE ratio of 23.78 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.04, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Saul Centers, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $31.25 and a fifty-two week high of $42.39. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $34.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.31.

Saul Centers (NYSE:BFS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.73 by ($0.02). Saul Centers had a return on equity of 14.69% and a net margin of 17.09%. The firm had revenue of $70.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $69.76 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Saul Centers, Inc. will post 3.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Saul Centers Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.75%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 15th. Saul Centers's dividend payout ratio is 160.54%.

About Saul Centers

Saul Centers is a self-managed, self-administered equity REIT headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland. Saul Centers currently operates and manages a real estate portfolio comprised of 61 properties that includes (a) 57 community and neighborhood Shopping Centers and Mixed-Use properties with approximately 9.8 million square feet of leasable area and (b) four land and development properties.