Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Trims Stock Holdings in Stag Industrial, Inc. $STAG

Key Points

• Westfield Capital Management sharply reduced its Stag Industrial position by 96.1% in the fourth quarter, leaving it with 6,467 shares worth about $238,000 after selling more than 159,000 shares.
• Analyst sentiment on STAG remains mostly cautious: the stock has a consensus Hold rating with an average price target of $40, while recent moves included rating downgrades and slight target reductions from several firms.
• Stag Industrial reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $0.32 per share and revenue of $224.21 million, and it announced a quarterly dividend of $0.3875 per share, implying a 4.2% annual yield.

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP cut its position in shares of Stag Industrial, Inc. (NYSE:STAG - Free Report) by 96.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,467 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 159,732 shares during the quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP's holdings in Stag Industrial were worth $238,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Stag Industrial by 1.5% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,539,842 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $347,261,000 after buying an additional 142,132 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Stag Industrial during the fourth quarter worth about $295,644,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Stag Industrial by 4.3% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,950,923 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $143,339,000 after buying an additional 162,887 shares in the last quarter. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC grew its holdings in shares of Stag Industrial by 10.7% during the third quarter. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC now owns 3,911,540 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $138,038,000 after buying an additional 377,952 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Stag Industrial by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,830,915 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $140,851,000 after buying an additional 65,502 shares in the last quarter. 88.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on STAG. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Stag Industrial from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Wall Street Zen raised Stag Industrial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Barclays decreased their price target on Stag Industrial from $39.00 to $38.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Stag Industrial from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Stag Industrial from $41.00 to $40.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $40.00.

Stag Industrial Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:STAG opened at $37.24 on Friday. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $37.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Stag Industrial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $33.72 and a 12-month high of $39.99. The firm has a market cap of $7.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.87 and a beta of 0.98.

Stag Industrial (NYSE:STAG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.09. Stag Industrial had a return on equity of 6.80% and a net margin of 28.25%.The firm had revenue of $224.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $221.52 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.61 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Stag Industrial, Inc. will post 2.63 EPS for the current year.

Stag Industrial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a $0.3875 dividend. This represents a $1.55 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. Stag Industrial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 120.16%.

Stag Industrial Company Profile

Stag Industrial, Inc is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in the acquisition, ownership and operation of single-tenant industrial properties throughout the United States. The company's portfolio is focused on free-standing warehouses, distribution centers and light manufacturing facilities designed to meet the logistical needs of a diverse tenant base. By concentrating on properties with straightforward layouts and minimal common-area maintenance, Stag Industrial seeks to deliver stable rental income and attractive risk-adjusted returns for its shareholders.

Since its founding in 2010 and initial public offering in 2011, Stag Industrial has pursued a disciplined investment strategy centered on high-quality, well-located assets.

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