Macerich (NYSE:MAC) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Shares of The Macerich Company (NYSE:MAC) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $20.32, but opened at $21.03. Macerich shares last traded at $20.93, with a volume of 2,972,603 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MAC. Bank of America lifted their price target on Macerich from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Macerich from $11.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Compass Point increased their price target on shares of Macerich from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Macerich from $13.00 to $14.60 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Macerich from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $16.40.

Macerich Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $4.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 2.50. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $18.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $16.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Macerich (NYSE:MAC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The real estate investment trust reported ($0.50) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.90). Macerich had a net margin of 8.98% and a return on equity of 3.15%. The business had revenue of $220.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $208.54 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.44 EPS. Macerich’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Macerich Company will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Macerich Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.21%. Macerich’s payout ratio is currently 174.36%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Macerich

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Macerich by 0.3% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 275,731 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,029,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Macerich by 0.6% during the third quarter. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC now owns 154,082 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,810,000 after purchasing an additional 859 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Macerich by 7.2% during the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 13,448 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $245,000 after purchasing an additional 902 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Macerich by 40.9% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,214 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 933 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Macerich by 152.2% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,546 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 933 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.38% of the company’s stock.

About Macerich

Macerich is a fully integrated, self-managed and self-administered real estate investment trust (REIT). As a leading owner, operator and developer of high-quality retail real estate in densely populated and attractive U.S. markets, Macerich’s portfolio is concentrated in California, the Pacific Northwest, Phoenix/Scottsdale, and the Metro New York to Washington, DC corridor.