Saul Centers (NYSE:BFS) Research Coverage Started at B. Riley

B. Riley assumed coverage on shares of Saul Centers (NYSE:BFS - Get Free Report) in a note issued to investors on Thursday, StockNewsAPI reports. The brokerage set a "buy" rating and a $43.50 price target on the real estate investment trust's stock. B. Riley's target price would suggest a potential upside of 17.54% from the stock's previous close.

Saul Centers Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of BFS traded up $0.78 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $37.01. The company had a trading volume of 80,999 shares, compared to its average volume of 55,896. Saul Centers has a 1 year low of $32.13 and a 1 year high of $41.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $887.50 million, a P/E ratio of 21.09 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.34, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $37.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $37.30.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO David Todd Pearson bought 2,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $36.52 per share, for a total transaction of $83,996.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief operating officer now owns 6,204 shares in the company, valued at approximately $226,570.08. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Saul Centers news, COO David Todd Pearson acquired 2,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $36.52 per share, for a total transaction of $83,996.00. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer now owns 6,204 shares in the company, valued at approximately $226,570.08. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO B Francis Saul II bought 8,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $37.80 per share, with a total value of $325,080.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 146,706 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,545,486.80. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 50.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. acquired a new position in Saul Centers in the third quarter valued at $2,768,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Saul Centers by 29.5% in the 3rd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 54,931 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,937,000 after buying an additional 12,514 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in Saul Centers in the third quarter worth $99,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in Saul Centers in the third quarter valued at $239,000. Finally, XML Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Saul Centers by 13.6% during the 3rd quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 31,439 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,109,000 after purchasing an additional 3,763 shares in the last quarter. 49.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.