GHP Investment Advisors Inc. Reduces Holdings in Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG)

GHP Investment Advisors Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) by 18.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 336 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 75 shares during the quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Simon Property Group were worth $48,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of SPG. AMI Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Simon Property Group by 1.2% during the first quarter. AMI Investment Management Inc. now owns 17,576 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,312,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. boosted its stake in Simon Property Group by 9.8% during the first quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 4,138 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $544,000 after buying an additional 371 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL boosted its stake in Simon Property Group by 56.8% during the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 55,270 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $7,271,000 after buying an additional 20,022 shares during the period. Prudential PLC purchased a new stake in shares of Simon Property Group during the first quarter valued at $642,000. Finally, Dakota Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Simon Property Group during the first quarter valued at $390,000. 93.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Simon Property Group Stock Performance

Shares of Simon Property Group stock opened at $144.81 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $47.19 billion, a PE ratio of 20.75, a P/E/G ratio of 7.60 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.54, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.77. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $149.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $134.50. Simon Property Group, Inc. has a one year low of $100.17 and a one year high of $157.82.

Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.29 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.34 by ($1.05). The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. Simon Property Group had a return on equity of 70.97% and a net margin of 42.30%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.15 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Simon Property Group, Inc. will post 12.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Simon Property Group declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 8th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the real estate investment trust to reacquire up to 4.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Simon Property Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a $1.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This is an increase from Simon Property Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.90. This represents a $7.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.39%. Simon Property Group’s payout ratio is currently 111.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Simon Property Group from $144.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Simon Property Group from $143.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. StockNews.com raised shares of Simon Property Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Simon Property Group from $142.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Simon Property Group from $139.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Simon Property Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.22.

About Simon Property Group

Simon is a real estate investment trust engaged in the ownership of premier shopping, dining, entertainment and mixed-use destinations and an S&P 100 company (Simon Property Group, NYSE: SPG). Our properties across North America, Europe and Asia provide community gathering places for millions of people every day and generate billions in annual sales.