Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Makes New Investment in Brixmor Property Group Inc. (NYSE:BRX)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in Brixmor Property Group Inc. (NYSE:BRX) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 84,400 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $1,964,000.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BRX. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Brixmor Property Group in the 1st quarter worth $407,000. AlphaCrest Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Brixmor Property Group by 44.2% in the 1st quarter. AlphaCrest Capital Management LLC now owns 14,689 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 4,504 shares in the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. purchased a new stake in shares of Brixmor Property Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $371,000. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can raised its position in shares of Brixmor Property Group by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 406,368 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $10,834,000 after buying an additional 21,179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Brixmor Property Group by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 45,190,584 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,166,369,000 after buying an additional 369,401 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

Brixmor Property Group Stock Performance

Brixmor Property Group stock opened at $21.31 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.53. The company’s 50-day moving average is $22.48 and its 200 day moving average is $22.10. Brixmor Property Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $19.40 and a 1-year high of $24.47.

Brixmor Property Group (NYSE:BRX) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.24 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.27). The company had revenue of $316.49 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $311.77 million. Brixmor Property Group had a return on equity of 10.63% and a net margin of 24.50%. Brixmor Property Group’s revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Brixmor Property Group Inc. will post 2.08 EPS for the current year.

Brixmor Property Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 2nd were paid a $0.273 dividend. This is an increase from Brixmor Property Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 1st. Brixmor Property Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 107.92%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Brixmor Property Group news, Director Michael B. Berman sold 10,475 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.82, for a total value of $239,039.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 40,556 shares in the company, valued at approximately $925,487.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Brixmor Property Group news, Director Michael B. Berman sold 10,475 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.82, for a total value of $239,039.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 40,556 shares in the company, valued at approximately $925,487.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian T. Finnegan sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.00, for a total transaction of $172,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 225,051 shares in the company, valued at $5,176,173. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BRX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and set a $24.00 target price (up from $23.00) on shares of Brixmor Property Group in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Brixmor Property Group from $22.75 to $24.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 target price on shares of Brixmor Property Group in a research report on Monday, March 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Brixmor Property Group from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Brixmor Property Group in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $27.00 target price on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $25.38.

About Brixmor Property Group

Brixmor (NYSE: BRX) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns and operates a high-quality, national portfolio of open-air shopping centers. Its 362 retail centers comprise approximately 64 million square feet of prime retail space in established trade areas. The Company strives to own and operate shopping centers that reflect Brixmor's vision to be the center of the communities we serve and are home to a diverse mix of thriving national, regional and local retailers.