Russell Investments Group Ltd. Lowers Stake in Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG)

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. has decreased its stake in Simon Property Group by 1.5%, now holding approximately 1.47 million shares valued at $244.2 million.
• Several hedge funds have increased their positions in Simon Property Group, with Park Square Financial Group boosting their stake by 108% during the same quarter.
• Simon Property Group announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $2.10 to $2.15, reflecting a strong commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lowered its stake in shares of Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG - Free Report) by 1.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,471,269 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 22,718 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.45% of Simon Property Group worth $244,199,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SPG. Park Square Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Simon Property Group by 108.0% during the 1st quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC now owns 156 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of Simon Property Group by 185.0% during the 1st quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 171 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its position in Simon Property Group by 421.6% in the 1st quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 193 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the period. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its position in Simon Property Group by 37.5% in the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 209 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the period. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its position in Simon Property Group by 77.2% in the 1st quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 218 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.01% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Simon Property Group news, Director Larry C. Glasscock acquired 396 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $159.29 per share, for a total transaction of $63,078.84. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 43,185 shares in the company, valued at $6,878,938.65. This trade represents a 0.93% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Glyn Aeppel acquired 234 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $159.29 per share, for a total transaction of $37,273.86. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 19,057 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,035,589.53. This trade represents a 1.24% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired a total of 2,386 shares of company stock valued at $380,066 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 8.60% of the company's stock.

Simon Property Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SPG opened at $165.32 on Tuesday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $162.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $164.72. Simon Property Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $136.34 and a 12 month high of $190.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.05, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.55, a P/E/G ratio of 11.03 and a beta of 1.48.

Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.04 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.40 billion. Simon Property Group had a net margin of 36.78% and a return on equity of 72.38%. Simon Property Group's quarterly revenue was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.90 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Simon Property Group, Inc. will post 12.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Simon Property Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be paid a $2.15 dividend. This is a boost from Simon Property Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. This represents a $8.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 9th. Simon Property Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 129.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on SPG. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH began coverage on shares of Simon Property Group in a research report on Friday, July 18th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $225.00 price target for the company. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Simon Property Group from $159.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Barclays started coverage on shares of Simon Property Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $170.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Simon Property Group from $182.00 to $169.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Simon Property Group from $192.00 to $180.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Simon Property Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $182.64.

Simon Property Group Company Profile

Simon Property Group, Inc NYSE: SPG is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT). Simon Property Group, L.P., or the Operating Partnership, is our majority-owned partnership subsidiary that owns all of our real estate properties and other assets. In this package, the terms Simon, we, our, or the Company refer to Simon Property Group, Inc, the Operating Partnership, and its subsidiaries.

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