American Assets Trust, Inc. (NYSE:AAT) Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.34

American Assets Trust, Inc. (NYSE:AAT) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, October 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share by the real estate investment trust on Thursday, December 17th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 10th.

American Assets Trust has raised its dividend by an average of 0.1% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 4 consecutive years. American Assets Trust has a payout ratio of 302.2% indicating that the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Research analysts expect American Assets Trust to earn $2.11 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.36 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 64.5%.

American Assets Trust Stock Up 4.2%

Shares of AAT traded up $0.89 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $22.11. The stock had a trading volume of 17,877 shares, compared to its average volume of 427,429. The company’s 50-day moving average is $21.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $21.37. American Assets Trust has a 12 month low of $17.72 and a 12 month high of $25.97.

American Assets Trust (NYSE:AAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $114.28 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.87 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Assets Trust will post 2.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American Assets Trust in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of American Assets Trust from $18.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $21.50.

American Assets Trust Company Profile

American Assets Trust, Inc (NYSE:AAT) is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, operates, acquires and develops primarily commercial and residential properties. Its portfolio includes office buildings, retail centers and multifamily communities.

The company focuses on high-quality properties in markets with attractive economic and demographic characteristics. Its properties are concentrated in select coastal regions of the United States, including Southern California, Northern California, Washington and Hawaii.

American Assets Trust traces its roots to a real estate business established by Ernest S.