Short Interest in Broadstone Net Lease, Inc. (NYSE:BNL) Grows By 59.0%

Key Points

• Short interest jumped 59.0% to 7,471,413 shares as of March 31 (about 3.9% of shares), producing a days-to-cover ratio of 4.1 based on average daily volume.
• Wall Street sentiment is mildly positive: nine analysts rate BNL a Buy and two a Hold, giving a consensus "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $20.22 after several recent price-target upgrades.
• BNL missed last quarter's EPS ($0.17 vs. $0.37 est.) but issued FY2026 guidance of $1.53–$1.57 and raised the quarterly dividend to $0.2925 (annualized yield 5.9%), though the dividend payout ratio is a high 234%.

Broadstone Net Lease, Inc. (NYSE:BNL - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 7,471,413 shares, a growth of 59.0% from the March 15th total of 4,700,434 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,831,509 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.1 days. Approximately 3.9% of the company's stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on BNL shares. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on shares of Broadstone Net Lease from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Broadstone Net Lease from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, January 17th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Broadstone Net Lease from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Broadstone Net Lease from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Broadstone Net Lease from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $20.22.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Strategic Advocates LLC acquired a new position in Broadstone Net Lease in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Broadstone Net Lease by 96.9% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,790 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 881 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its stake in Broadstone Net Lease by 42.9% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new position in Broadstone Net Lease in the 3rd quarter valued at about $61,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Broadstone Net Lease by 80.9% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,261 shares of the company's stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 1,906 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.07% of the company's stock.

Broadstone Net Lease Price Performance

Broadstone Net Lease stock opened at $19.79 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.79 billion, a PE ratio of 39.57 and a beta of 0.99. The company's 50-day moving average is $19.13 and its 200-day moving average is $18.43. Broadstone Net Lease has a fifty-two week low of $15.15 and a fifty-two week high of $19.92.

Broadstone Net Lease (NYSE:BNL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.20). The firm had revenue of $118.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $116.35 million. Broadstone Net Lease had a return on equity of 3.17% and a net margin of 21.25%.Broadstone Net Lease has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.530-1.57 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Broadstone Net Lease will post 1.43 EPS for the current year.

Broadstone Net Lease Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $0.2925 dividend. This is an increase from Broadstone Net Lease's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.17 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.9%. Broadstone Net Lease's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 234.00%.

About Broadstone Net Lease

Broadstone Net Lease, Inc NYSE: BNL is a publicly traded real estate investment trust focused on owning and operating single-tenant commercial properties under long-term net leases. The company specializes in acquiring properties that are leased to creditworthy tenants, allowing it to generate predictable, stable rental income while transferring most operating expenses and responsibilities to its lessees.

Broadstone Net Lease’s portfolio spans a variety of property types, including industrial facilities, distribution centers, manufacturing plants, life science and office buildings, and essential retail locations.

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