Strs Ohio Makes New Investment in Macerich Company (The) $MAC

Key Points

• Strs Ohio acquired 46,400 shares of Macerich Company worth approximately $797,000 in the first quarter of the year.
• Several hedge funds, including AQR Capital Management and Signaturefd LLC, have also increased their stakes in Macerich, reflecting growing institutional interest in the company.
• Macerich's recent earnings report missed estimates, posting a net margin of -41.33% and EPS of $0.32, while revenue was up 15.9% year-over-year.

Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Macerich Company (The) (NYSE:MAC - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 46,400 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $797,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Macerich by 40.1% in the first quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,130,323 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $105,258,000 after acquiring an additional 1,754,466 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Macerich by 3.6% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,357,185 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $74,813,000 after buying an additional 151,295 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Macerich by 4.6% during the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,432,879 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $58,943,000 after buying an additional 152,221 shares during the period. Centersquare Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Macerich by 3.3% during the first quarter. Centersquare Investment Management LLC now owns 2,082,086 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $35,749,000 after buying an additional 66,648 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Macerich during the first quarter valued at $32,554,000. 87.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on MAC. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Macerich from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Macerich from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Macerich from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Mizuho upgraded Macerich from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $22.00 to $18.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH started coverage on Macerich in a report on Friday, July 18th. They set a "buy" rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $19.80.

Macerich Price Performance

MAC stock traded down $0.38 during trading on Monday, reaching $17.07. The company's stock had a trading volume of 947,768 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,965,823. The company's fifty day moving average is $17.49 and its 200-day moving average is $16.37. Macerich Company has a 1 year low of $12.48 and a 1 year high of $22.27. The company has a market capitalization of $4.31 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 2.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00.

Macerich (NYSE:MAC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.02). Macerich had a negative net margin of 41.33% and a negative return on equity of 15.15%. The company had revenue of $249.79 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $245.19 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.39 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Macerich Company will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Macerich Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be paid a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 9th. Macerich's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -38.86%.

About Macerich

Macerich is a fully integrated, self-managed and self-administered real estate investment trust (REIT). As a leading owner, operator and developer of high-quality retail real estate in densely populated and attractive U.S. markets, Macerich's portfolio is concentrated in California, the Pacific Northwest, Phoenix/Scottsdale, and the Metro New York to Washington, DC corridor.