Shaftesbury is a Real Estate Investment Trust which invests exclusively in the liveliest parts of London's West End. Focused on food, beverage, retail and leisure, our portfolio is clustered mainly in Carnaby, Seven Dials and Chinatown, but also includes substantial ownerships in East and West Covent Garden, Soho and Fitzrovia. Extending to 16 acres, the portfolio comprises 611 restaurants, cafés, pubs and shops, extending to 1.1 million sq. ft., 0.4 million sq. ft. of offices and 624 apartments. All our properties are close to the main West End Underground stations, and within ten minutes' walk of the two West End transport hubs for the Elizabeth Line, at Tottenham Court Road and Bond Street. In addition, we have a 50% interest in the Longmartin joint venture, which has a long leasehold interest, extending to 1.9 acres, in St Martin's Courtyard in Covent Garden.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several equities research analysts recently commented on SHB shares. Berenberg Bank reduced their price target on shares of Shaftesbury from GBX 725 ($8.76) to GBX 654 ($7.90) and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 1st. Barclays restated an "underweight" rating and issued a GBX 560 ($6.77) price target on shares of Shaftesbury in a research report on Monday, May 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of GBX 647.33 ($7.82).
Shaftesbury Stock Down 1.3 %
SHB Stock traded down GBX 6.40 ($0.08) during midday trading on Thursday, reaching GBX 477.20 ($5.77). The company had a trading volume of 345,267 shares, compared to its average volume of 381,656. Shaftesbury has a 1 year low of GBX 474.40 ($5.73) and a 1 year high of GBX 668.50 ($8.08). The company has a current ratio of 6.40, a quick ratio of 5.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 36.58. The company has a market capitalization of £1.83 billion and a P/E ratio of 458.85. The company has a 50 day moving average of GBX 534.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of GBX 572.36.
Shaftesbury Increases Dividend
The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 9th were given a GBX 4.80 ($0.06) dividend. This is an increase from Shaftesbury's previous dividend of $4.00. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 9th. This represents a yield of 0.82%. Shaftesbury's dividend payout ratio is presently 6.15%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In related news, insider Simon J. Quayle bought 76,014 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 22nd. The stock was bought at an average price of GBX 548 ($6.62) per share, for a total transaction of £416,556.72 ($503,330.98).