Retail Opportunity Investments (NASDAQ:ROIC) was upgraded by Zacks Investment Research from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Zacks.com reports. The firm currently has a $20.00 target price on the real estate investment trust's stock. Zacks Investment Research's price target points to a potential upside of 8.46% from the stock's current price.
According to Zacks, "Retail Opportunity Investments Corp. is a corporation that intends to qualify as a REIT for U.S. federal incoming tax purposes and that expects to invest in, acquire, own, lease, reposition and manage a diverse portfolio of necessity-based retail properties. This includes primarily, well located community and neighborhood shopping centers, anchored by national or regional supermarkets and drugstores. The company may also acquire other retail properties, including power centers, regional malls lifestyle centers and single-tenant retail locations that are leased to national, regional and local tenants. In addition, the Company may supplement its direct purchases of retail properties with first mortgages or second mortgages, mezzanine loans, bridge or other loans or debt investments related to retail properties, in each case provided that the underlying real estate meets the Company's criteria for direct investment. "
A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Citigroup upgraded shares of Retail Opportunity Investments from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 1st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Retail Opportunity Investments from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $17.75.
Shares of NASDAQ ROIC opened at $18.44 on Thursday. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $17.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $17.58. Retail Opportunity Investments has a 52-week low of $9.69 and a 52-week high of $18.86. The firm has a market cap of $2.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a quick ratio of 3.28, a current ratio of 3.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00.
Retail Opportunity Investments (NASDAQ:ROIC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters' consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.08. Retail Opportunity Investments had a net margin of 13.89% and a return on equity of 3.03%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Retail Opportunity Investments will post 1 EPS for the current fiscal year.
A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ROIC. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in Retail Opportunity Investments by 207.8% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 65,911 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,143,000 after purchasing an additional 44,497 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its stake in shares of Retail Opportunity Investments by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 251,400 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $3,990,000 after acquiring an additional 10,058 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its stake in shares of Retail Opportunity Investments by 22.4% in the 1st quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 13,103 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $208,000 after acquiring an additional 2,401 shares during the period. UBS Group AG raised its stake in shares of Retail Opportunity Investments by 50.7% in the 1st quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 9,555 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $152,000 after acquiring an additional 3,213 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Retail Opportunity Investments in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $309,000. 94.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Retail Opportunity Investments Company Profile
Retail Opportunity Investments Corp. operates as a self-managed real estate investment trust. The company engages in the ownership, management, and redevelopment of retail real estate properties. It specializes in the acquisition, ownership and management of grocery-anchored shopping centers located in densely-populated, metropolitan markets across the West Coast.
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