Franklin Resources Inc. Raises Stock Position in Sun Communities, Inc. (NYSE:SUI)

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Sun Communities, Inc. (NYSE:SUI - Free Report) by 369.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,448 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 28,685 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.'s holdings in Sun Communities were worth $4,482,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Sun Communities during the 4th quarter worth approximately $888,783,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sun Communities by 23.3% during the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 2,344,020 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $288,244,000 after purchasing an additional 442,557 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sun Communities by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,123,440 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $138,149,000 after buying an additional 47,899 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in shares of Sun Communities by 26.7% in the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 819,369 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $100,758,000 after buying an additional 172,924 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Sun Communities by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 779,744 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $95,885,000 after buying an additional 108,054 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.59% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on SUI. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Sun Communities in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $150.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Sun Communities in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of Sun Communities from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sun Communities has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $136.70.

Sun Communities Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:SUI traded up $0.09 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $122.57. 40,264 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 833,275. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Sun Communities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $109.22 and a 52-week high of $147.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 65.70 and a beta of 0.84. The business's fifty day moving average is $127.76 and its 200-day moving average is $127.35.

Sun Communities (NYSE:SUI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.02. Sun Communities had a net margin of 7.46% and a return on equity of 3.21%. The business had revenue of $745.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $724.68 million. As a group, analysts forecast that Sun Communities, Inc. will post 6.77 EPS for the current year.

Sun Communities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. Sun Communities's payout ratio is 508.11%.

About Sun Communities

Established in 1975, Sun Communities, Inc became a publicly owned corporation in December 1993. The Company is a fully integrated REIT listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol: SUI. As of December 31, 2023, the Company owned, operated, or had an interest in a portfolio of 667 developed MH, RV and Marina properties comprising 179,310 developed sites and approximately 48,030 wet slips and dry storage spaces in the U.S., the UK and Canada.