Northern Trust Corp Increases Stock Holdings in Global Net Lease, Inc. (NYSE:GNL)

Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Global Net Lease, Inc. (NYSE:GNL) by 26.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,612,357 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 544,719 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned 1.13% of Global Net Lease worth $19,070,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Helix Partners Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Global Net Lease in the 4th quarter valued at $24,455,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Global Net Lease by 107.3% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,269,118 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,265,000 after buying an additional 656,890 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in shares of Global Net Lease in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,021,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Global Net Lease by 14.8% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,575,498 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,101,000 after acquiring an additional 461,173 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its position in Global Net Lease by 135.2% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 799,140 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,834,000 after acquiring an additional 459,439 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.19% of the company’s stock.

Global Net Lease Stock Down 0.5%

GNL stock opened at $7.95 on Wednesday. Global Net Lease, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $6.51 and a fifty-two week high of $9.11. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $7.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $7.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.06 and a current ratio of 0.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.46 and a beta of 1.22.

Global Net Lease (NYSE:GNL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.06. Global Net Lease had a negative return on equity of 7.04% and a negative net margin of 21.37%. The firm had revenue of $132.42 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $187.40 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Global Net Lease, Inc. will post 1.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Global Net Lease Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th were given a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 11th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.56%. Global Net Lease’s payout ratio is currently -51.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, B. Riley started coverage on Global Net Lease in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $8.00 price target for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $9.00.

Insider Transactions at Global Net Lease

In other news, major shareholder Nicholas S. Schorsch sold 200,000 shares of Global Net Lease stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.95, for a total transaction of $1,590,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,629,073 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,951,130.35. This trade represents a 10.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Global Net Lease Company Profile

Global Net Lease, Inc (NYSE: GNL) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust listed on the NYSE. The firm focused on acquiring a diversified global portfolio of commercial properties, with an emphasis on sale-leaseback transactions involving single tenant, mission critical income producing net-leased assets across the United States, Western and Northern Europe.