Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) Shares Sold by Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. lowered its position in shares of Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) by 4.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 7,921 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 400 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Simon Property Group were worth $1,364,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SPG. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in Simon Property Group by 617.5% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,191,296 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $539,393,000 after buying an additional 2,746,503 shares during the period. Hamlin Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Simon Property Group in the 4th quarter valued at $109,403,000. KBC Group NV raised its position in Simon Property Group by 170.3% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 880,309 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $151,597,000 after purchasing an additional 554,605 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Simon Property Group by 22,608.6% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 542,281 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $93,386,000 after purchasing an additional 539,893 shares during the period. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec grew its position in Simon Property Group by 295.3% during the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 655,300 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $110,759,000 after purchasing an additional 489,519 shares during the last quarter. 93.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Simon Property Group Price Performance

Simon Property Group stock opened at $168.44 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $54.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 1.78. Simon Property Group, Inc. has a one year low of $139.25 and a one year high of $190.14. The business has a fifty day moving average of $175.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $174.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.19, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a current ratio of 1.28.

Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by $1.70. Simon Property Group had a net margin of 41.49% and a return on equity of 74.02%. As a group, analysts predict that Simon Property Group, Inc. will post 12.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Simon Property Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Simon Property Group’s payout ratio is currently 115.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Reuben S. Leibowitz purchased 465 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 30th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $168.59 per share, for a total transaction of $78,394.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 55,919 shares in the company, valued at $9,427,384.21. This represents a 0.84 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 8.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SPG. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Simon Property Group from $158.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com raised Simon Property Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Scotiabank set a $186.00 target price on Simon Property Group in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Simon Property Group in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “hold” rating and a $195.00 price target for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Simon Property Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $179.00 to $198.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $180.33.

Simon Property Group Company Profile

Simon Property Group, Inc (NYSE:SPG) is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT). Simon Property Group, L.P., or the Operating Partnership, is our majority-owned partnership subsidiary that owns all of our real estate properties and other assets. In this package, the terms Simon, we, our, or the Company refer to Simon Property Group, Inc, the Operating Partnership, and its subsidiaries.