Saul Centers, Inc. $BFS Stock Position Lowered by Vanguard Group Inc.

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. has reduced its stake in Saul Centers, now owning about 8.02% with a value of approximately $69.99 million.
• Saul Centers reported Q2 earnings of $0.73 EPS, missing analyst estimates, alongside a revenue of $69.43 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.59 per share, yielding 7.0%, with a payout ratio of 178.79%.

Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS - Free Report) by 1.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,940,368 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 19,293 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 8.02% of Saul Centers worth $69,989,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Saul Centers during the fourth quarter worth about $2,549,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in Saul Centers during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,253,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Saul Centers by 27.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 140,411 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $5,448,000 after purchasing an additional 29,951 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Saul Centers in the first quarter valued at approximately $792,000. Finally, Citadel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Saul Centers by 84.6% during the fourth quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 38,421 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,491,000 after buying an additional 17,613 shares during the last quarter. 49.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Saul Centers Stock Performance

BFS stock traded up $0.30 during trading on Friday, reaching $34.14. 44,049 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 55,286. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.16. Saul Centers, Inc. has a 1-year low of $31.25 and a 1-year high of $42.39. The company's fifty day moving average price is $33.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.23. The firm has a market cap of $832.09 million, a PE ratio of 25.87 and a beta of 1.11.

Saul Centers (NYSE:BFS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75 by ($0.02). Saul Centers had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 13.79%. The firm had revenue of $69.43 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $71.39 million. On average, research analysts expect that Saul Centers, Inc. will post 3.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Saul Centers Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 15th were issued a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 15th. Saul Centers's payout ratio is presently 178.79%.

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.