Prudential PLC Grows Holdings in Digital Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:DLR)

Key Points

• Prudential PLC has increased its holdings in Digital Realty Trust, Inc. by 67.7% in the first quarter, now owning 94,152 shares valued at approximately $13.49 million.
• Digital Realty Trust announced a quarterly dividend of $1.22, with an annualized payout of $4.88 and a yield of 2.9%.
• The company's stock has received several price target upgrades, with Wells Fargo raising it from $185.00 to $195.00, reflecting a generally positive outlook from analysts.

Prudential PLC boosted its holdings in Digital Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:DLR - Free Report) by 67.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 94,152 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 37,996 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC's holdings in Digital Realty Trust were worth $13,491,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Digital Realty Trust by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 52,378,860 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $7,505,367,000 after purchasing an additional 925,674 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Digital Realty Trust by 57.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,080,550 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $900,934,000 after purchasing an additional 1,854,748 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in Digital Realty Trust by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,819,606 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $854,661,000 after purchasing an additional 492,692 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Digital Realty Trust by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,656,733 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $825,771,000 after purchasing an additional 96,639 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its stake in Digital Realty Trust by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 4,384,451 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $777,495,000 after purchasing an additional 48,522 shares during the period. 99.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Digital Realty Trust Trading Down 1.4%

DLR traded down $2.41 during trading on Thursday, reaching $166.17. The company had a trading volume of 1,313,018 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,467,827. The stock has a market cap of $56.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.61, a PEG ratio of 4.85 and a beta of 0.92. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $173.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $163.48. Digital Realty Trust, Inc. has a 52 week low of $129.95 and a 52 week high of $198.00. The company has a quick ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82.

Digital Realty Trust (NYSE:DLR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.13. Digital Realty Trust had a return on equity of 6.46% and a net margin of 23.98%. The company had revenue of $1.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.44 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.65 earnings per share. Digital Realty Trust's revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Digital Realty Trust, Inc. will post 7.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Digital Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. Digital Realty Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 128.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Digital Realty Trust news, Director Mark R. Patterson sold 175 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.50, for a total value of $30,887.50. Following the sale, the director owned 6,522 shares in the company, valued at $1,151,133. This trade represents a 2.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DLR has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and issued a $200.00 price target (up from $174.00) on shares of Digital Realty Trust in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Guggenheim assumed coverage on Digital Realty Trust in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on Digital Realty Trust from $208.00 to $206.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised Digital Realty Trust from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, June 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $193.00 price objective (up from $190.00) on shares of Digital Realty Trust in a report on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $190.68.

About Digital Realty Trust

Digital Realty Trust, Inc operates as a real estate investment trust, which engages in the provision of data center, colocation and interconnection solutions. It serves the following industries: artificial intelligence (AI), networks, cloud, digital media, mobile, financial services, healthcare, and gaming.