Pershing Square Inc.'s Lock-Up Period Set To Expire on October 26th (NYSE:PS)

Key Points

• Pershing Square’s lock-up period expires October 26, lifting restrictions on insiders and major shareholders selling shares. The company issued 40.5 million shares in its April IPO at $50 each, raising approximately $2.03 billion.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly negative: Pershing Square has an average “Reduce” rating and a consensus price target of $42, with several firms downgrading the stock to “Sell” or “Hold.”
• Shares opened at $44.41, while the company cut its quarterly dividend to $0.103 from $0.122, resulting in an annualized yield of about 0.9% and a payout ratio of 292.86%.

Pershing Square's (NYSE:PS - Get Free Report) lock-up period is set to expire on Monday, October 26th. Pershing Square had issued 40,516,960 shares in its IPO on April 29th. The total size of the offering was $2,025,848,000 based on an initial share price of $50.00. After the end of Pershing Square's lock-up period, restrictions preventing major shareholders and company insiders from selling shares in the company will be lifted.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on PS shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Pershing Square from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday, October 11th. Citigroup cut Pershing Square from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $45.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday, October 9th. JonesTrading downgraded shares of Pershing Square from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Pershing Square from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and issued a $38.00 price objective (down from $54.00) on shares of Pershing Square in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Pershing Square has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $42.00.

Pershing Square Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of Pershing Square stock opened at $44.41 on Monday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $45.19. The company has a market cap of $17.76 billion and a P/E ratio of 317.21. Pershing Square has a 1-year low of $22.01 and a 1-year high of $60.40.

Pershing Square (NYSE:PS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $68.03 million for the quarter. Equities research analysts predict that Pershing Square will post 0.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Pershing Square Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 12th will be issued a $0.1030 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 9th. This is a decrease from Pershing Square's previous quarterly dividend of $0.1220. This represents a $0.41 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Pershing Square's dividend payout ratio is currently 292.86%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pershing Square

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of PS. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in Pershing Square in the second quarter worth approximately $132,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new position in Pershing Square during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,702,000. Readystate Asset Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Pershing Square during the 2nd quarter valued at $822,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pershing Square during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,459,000. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pershing Square in the 2nd quarter worth $302,000.

About Pershing Square

Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. is an investment holding company that seeks long-term capital appreciation through a concentrated portfolio of investments in publicly traded companies. The company is managed by Pershing Square Capital Management, L.P., an investment management firm that typically takes significant positions in a limited number of businesses and engages with their management teams and boards.

Pershing Square's investment approach emphasizes fundamental research, long-term ownership and active involvement with portfolio companies.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.