Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS) Declares $0.59 Quarterly Dividend

Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, June 12th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be given a dividend of 0.59 per share by the real estate investment trust on Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th.

Saul Centers has a dividend payout ratio of 181.5% indicating that the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Analysts expect Saul Centers to earn $2.92 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.36 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 80.8%.

Saul Centers Stock Up 0.9%

NYSE BFS traded up $0.32 on Monday, hitting $34.53. 51,824 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 51,085. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.61. The company has a market cap of $835.54 million, a PE ratio of 18.76 and a beta of 1.09. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $33.38 and a 200-day moving average of $35.93. Saul Centers has a 12 month low of $31.25 and a 12 month high of $42.39.

Saul Centers (NYSE:BFS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.73 by ($0.02). Saul Centers had a return on equity of 17.16% and a net margin of 20.84%. The business had revenue of $70.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $69.76 million. As a group, analysts forecast that Saul Centers will post 3.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Saul Centers from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Saul Centers

In other Saul Centers news, CEO B Francis Saul II acquired 7,179 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $33.59 per share, with a total value of $241,142.61. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 214,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,207,607.84. This trade represents a 3.46% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders bought 10,210 shares of company stock worth $341,786. Insiders own 56.57% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Saul Centers

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in Saul Centers during the first quarter worth about $76,000. Jane Street Group LLC grew its position in shares of Saul Centers by 152.5% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 22,477 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $811,000 after acquiring an additional 13,576 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Saul Centers by 36.0% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 119,824 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $4,322,000 after purchasing an additional 31,722 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Saul Centers in the 1st quarter worth approximately $392,000. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC purchased a new position in Saul Centers in the first quarter valued at approximately $118,000. 49.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Saul Centers Company Profile

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.