STAG Industrial, Inc. (NYSE:STAG) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

STAG Industrial, Inc. (NYSE:STAG) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 4,020,000 shares, a growth of 26.0% from the February 13th total of 3,190,000 shares. Approximately 2.2% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,290,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.1 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on STAG shares. Raymond James upped their target price on STAG Industrial from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays reduced their price objective on STAG Industrial from $40.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of STAG Industrial from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $40.38.

STAG Industrial Stock Performance

Shares of STAG Industrial stock traded up $0.38 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $35.83. 1,488,315 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,057,480. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The business has a 50-day moving average of $34.88 and a 200-day moving average of $36.36. STAG Industrial has a 1 year low of $32.27 and a 1 year high of $41.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.45 and a beta of 1.05.

STAG Industrial (NYSE:STAG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.43. STAG Industrial had a net margin of 24.64% and a return on equity of 5.51%. As a group, analysts expect that STAG Industrial will post 2.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STAG Industrial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $0.1242 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a yield of 4.25%. This is an increase from STAG Industrial’s previous dividend of $0.12. STAG Industrial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 143.27%.

Insider Transactions at STAG Industrial

In related news, Director Benjamin S. Butcher sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.10, for a total value of $1,755,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 9,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $338,083.20. The trade was a 83.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of STAG Industrial

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Employees Retirement System of Texas lifted its holdings in STAG Industrial by 426.8% in the fourth quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas now owns 216,000 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $7,305,000 after acquiring an additional 175,000 shares during the period. Integrated Advisors Network LLC lifted its stake in shares of STAG Industrial by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 11,673 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $395,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares during the period. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new stake in STAG Industrial during the fourth quarter worth about $112,000. Parr Mcknight Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in STAG Industrial during the fourth quarter worth about $896,000. Finally, PharVision Advisers LLC acquired a new position in STAG Industrial during the fourth quarter worth about $264,000. 88.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About STAG Industrial

STAG Industrial, Inc is a real estate investment company, which engages in acquiring, owning, and managing single-tenant, industrial real estate assets. It offers industrial real estate operating platform to real estate ownership. The company was founded by Benjamin S. Butcher on July 21, 2010 and is headquartered in Boston, MA.