SL Green Realty (NYSE:SLG) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of SL Green Realty (NYSE:SLG) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Mizuho set a $38.00 price objective on shares of SL Green Realty and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Raymond James Financial set a $44.00 price target on SL Green Realty in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on SL Green Realty from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on SL Green Realty from $66.00 to $61.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $45.00 target price on shares of SL Green Realty in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, SL Green Realty has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $53.30.

SL Green Realty Stock Performance

SLG opened at $36.79 on Wednesday. SL Green Realty has a 12-month low of $36.12 and a 12-month high of $66.91. The stock has a market cap of $2.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -22.85 and a beta of 1.63. The business has a 50 day moving average of $44.09 and a 200-day moving average of $50.08. The company has a quick ratio of 2.66, a current ratio of 2.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05.

SL Green Realty (NYSE:SLG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.03. SL Green Realty had a negative return on equity of 2.44% and a negative net margin of 9.66%.The business had revenue of $159.82 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $162.73 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.81 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that SL Green Realty will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at SL Green Realty

In related news, CEO Marc Holliday sold 22,223 shares of SL Green Realty stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.40, for a total value of $986,701.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 9,698 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $430,591.20. This trade represents a 69.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Andrew S. Levine sold 1,493 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.27, for a total transaction of $67,588.11. Following the transaction, the insider owned 7,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $318,927.15. This represents a 17.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 5.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SL Green Realty

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of SL Green Realty by 83.0% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 310,982 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $14,265,000 after buying an additional 141,060 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its position in SL Green Realty by 11.3% in the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 9,595 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $440,000 after acquiring an additional 976 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in SL Green Realty by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 6,220 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $285,000 after acquiring an additional 361 shares during the last quarter. Adelante Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in SL Green Realty during the fourth quarter worth about $4,441,000. Finally, Engineers Gate Manager LP lifted its holdings in shares of SL Green Realty by 17,417.6% in the fourth quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 840,844 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $38,570,000 after acquiring an additional 836,044 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.96% of the company’s stock.

SL Green Realty Company Profile

SL Green Realty Corp. (NYSE: SLG) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) focused primarily on the acquisition, management and development of commercial office properties in Manhattan. As one of New York City’s largest office landlords, the company’s portfolio includes Class A office buildings and mixed-use projects located in prime Midtown and Downtown submarkets. SL Green generates revenue through leasing office space to a diverse mix of tenants spanning financial services, technology, media and professional services firms.

Founded in 1980 by real estate investor Stephen L.