Regency Centers Corporation $REG Shares Sold by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group cut its stake in Regency Centers by 50.1% in the fourth quarter, leaving it with 181,996 shares valued at about $12.6 million.
• Analysts remain mixed on the stock: Morgan Stanley, Barclays and Wells Fargo all raised price targets, but the overall consensus from MarketBeat is still Hold with an average target of $81.71.
• Regency Centers announced a quarterly dividend of $0.755 per share, or $3.02 annualized, yielding about 3.8%; however, the payout ratio is high at 104.14%.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lowered its position in Regency Centers Corporation (NASDAQ:REG - Free Report) by 50.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 181,996 shares of the company's stock after selling 182,439 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.10% of Regency Centers worth $12,563,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV increased its holdings in Regency Centers by 68.6% in the fourth quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 53,562 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,697,000 after buying an additional 21,799 shares in the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic purchased a new position in Regency Centers in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,339,000. Centersquare Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Regency Centers by 5.7% in the third quarter. Centersquare Investment Management LLC now owns 351,963 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,658,000 after buying an additional 18,997 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Regency Centers in the third quarter valued at about $1,031,000. Finally, Korea Investment CORP increased its holdings in Regency Centers by 61.9% in the third quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 119,613 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,720,000 after buying an additional 45,734 shares in the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Regency Centers from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Regency Centers from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Evercore set a $80.00 target price on shares of Regency Centers in a report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Regency Centers from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Regency Centers from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $81.71.

Regency Centers Stock Performance

Shares of REG opened at $78.84 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 2.14. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $77.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $73.94. Regency Centers Corporation has a 1-year low of $66.86 and a 1-year high of $81.66. The stock has a market cap of $14.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.82.

Regency Centers Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.755 per share. This represents a $3.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. Regency Centers's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 104.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Martin E. Stein, Jr. sold 274,615 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.40, for a total transaction of $21,529,816.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Nicholas Andrew Wibbenmeyer sold 7,927 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.06, for a total transaction of $626,708.62. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 33,069 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,614,435.14. This trade represents a 19.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 450,032 shares of company stock valued at $35,233,456. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Regency Centers Profile

Regency Centers Corporation is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) specializing in the ownership, operation and development of grocery-anchored shopping centers. Focused on everyday needs retail, the company's portfolio is strategically concentrated in high-growth, densely populated markets across the United States. By aligning its properties with essential retailers, Regency Centers delivers stable income streams and drives sustained value for shareholders.

Founded in 1963 and headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, Regency Centers began as a single shopping center developer before evolving into one of the largest owners of grocery-center real estate.

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