Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS Buys 45,195 Shares of The Macerich Company (NYSE:MAC)

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS grew its position in shares of The Macerich Company (NYSE:MAC) by 53.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 128,978 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 45,195 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS’s holdings in Macerich were worth $2,569,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Macerich by 68.8% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,610 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 1,064 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Macerich by 314.2% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,467 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 2,630 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Macerich by 36.5% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,388 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $87,000 after acquiring an additional 1,174 shares in the last quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund acquired a new position in shares of Macerich in the 4th quarter valued at about $99,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Macerich during the 4th quarter valued at about $212,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.38% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MAC. Mizuho upgraded Macerich from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $14.00 to $22.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Macerich from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $19.00 to $23.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Macerich in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $22.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Macerich from $22.00 to $18.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their target price on Macerich from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $19.20.

Macerich Stock Performance

Shares of Macerich stock opened at $17.79 on Tuesday. The Macerich Company has a 52 week low of $12.99 and a 52 week high of $22.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $19.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $19.15. The company has a market cap of $4.49 billion, a PE ratio of 45.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 2.62.

Macerich Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.82%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 4th. Macerich’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -86.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Andrea M. Stephen sold 63,289 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.59, for a total transaction of $1,303,120.51. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 83,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,718,832.61. This trade represents a 43.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.53% 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.