Franklin Resources Inc. Raises Position in Regency Centers Co. (NASDAQ:REG)

Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Regency Centers Co. (NASDAQ:REG) by 6.3% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 278,647 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 16,617 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Regency Centers were worth $19,703,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Quest Partners LLC boosted its stake in Regency Centers by 25,250.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 507 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. Family Firm Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Regency Centers during the second quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Regency Centers by 582.1% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 839 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 716 shares during the last quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt lifted its position in Regency Centers by 300.0% in the 3rd quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new stake in Regency Centers during the 2nd quarter valued at $60,000. 96.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Regency Centers Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:REG opened at $72.42 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market cap of $13.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.00, a P/E/G ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 1.22. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $73.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $69.67. Regency Centers Co. has a fifty-two week low of $56.51 and a fifty-two week high of $76.53.

Regency Centers (NASDAQ:REG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.50). Regency Centers had a return on equity of 5.85% and a net margin of 27.78%. The firm had revenue of $360.27 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $355.17 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.02 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Regency Centers Co. will post 4.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Regency Centers Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.705 per share. This represents a $2.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.89%. This is an increase from Regency Centers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. Regency Centers’s dividend payout ratio is presently 132.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on REG. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Regency Centers from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Regency Centers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $70.00 to $75.00 in a report on Thursday, September 26th. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on Regency Centers from $72.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Regency Centers from $69.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised shares of Regency Centers from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Regency Centers has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $77.08.

Regency Centers Profile

Regency Centers is a preeminent national owner, operator, and developer of shopping centers located in suburban trade areas with compelling demographics. Our portfolio includes thriving properties merchandised with highly productive grocers, restaurants, service providers, and best-in-class retailers that connect to their neighborhoods, communities, and customers.