Saul Centers (NYSE:BFS) Shares Pass Above 200-Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS)’s stock price crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $34.15 and traded as high as $36.33. Saul Centers shares last traded at $35.5440, with a volume of 97,097 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Saul Centers in a research note on Monday, May 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Saul Centers presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Saul Centers Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $35.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.54, a current ratio of 1.71 and a quick ratio of 1.71. The stock has a market cap of $902.21 million, a P/E ratio of 34.72 and a beta of 0.90.

Saul Centers (NYSE:BFS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $74.64 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $75.11 million. Saul Centers had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 12.44%.

Saul Centers Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 15th. Saul Centers’s dividend payout ratio is 222.64%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Saul Centers

In other news, COO David Todd Pearson acquired 2,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $34.74 per share, for a total transaction of $90,324.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 79,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,755,611.54. This trade represents a 3.39% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 51.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Saul Centers

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BFS. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Saul Centers by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 39,117 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,411,000 after acquiring an additional 929 shares during the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new position in shares of Saul Centers during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $118,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Saul Centers in the first quarter valued at $392,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Saul Centers by 36.0% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 119,824 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $4,322,000 after purchasing an additional 31,722 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC increased its position in Saul Centers by 152.5% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 22,477 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $811,000 after purchasing an additional 13,576 shares during the last quarter. 49.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Saul Centers Company Profile

Saul Centers, Inc is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in the ownership, development and management of retail properties. The company’s portfolio is focused on grocery-anchored and necessity-based shopping centers, providing stable, long-term cash flows through leasing arrangements with national and regional retailers. In addition to ground-up development, Saul Centers actively pursues redevelopment and adaptive reuse projects to enhance value in existing assets.

Founded by the Saul family in 1945, Saul Centers has grown from a local real estate development firm into a listed REIT while maintaining its headquarters in Bethesda, Maryland.