Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS) Short Interest Up 27.8% in March

Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 105,800 shares, an increase of 27.8% from the February 28th total of 82,800 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 49,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.1 days. Approximately 0.8% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Saul Centers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th.

Saul Centers Stock Performance

NYSE:BFS traded down $0.03 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $36.32. 41,404 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 50,331. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.61, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. Saul Centers has a one year low of $34.98 and a one year high of $42.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $878.98 million, a PE ratio of 19.74 and a beta of 1.08. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.58.

Saul Centers (NYSE:BFS) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.31. The company had revenue of $67.92 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $68.94 million. Saul Centers had a return on equity of 17.16% and a net margin of 20.84%. Analysts anticipate that Saul Centers will post 3.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Saul Centers Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.50%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. Saul Centers’s dividend payout ratio is currently 144.79%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BFS. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in Saul Centers by 1,249.5% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,336 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 1,237 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Saul Centers by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,418 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $94,000 after acquiring an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in shares of Saul Centers in the 4th quarter worth $105,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. raised its position in Saul Centers by 31.2% during the third quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 3,648 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $153,000 after purchasing an additional 868 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Saul Centers during the fourth quarter worth about $179,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.99% of the company’s stock.

Saul Centers Company Profile

Saul Centers is a self-managed, self-administered equity REIT headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland. Saul Centers currently operates and manages a real estate portfolio comprised of 61 properties that includes (a) 57 community and neighborhood Shopping Centers and Mixed-Use properties with approximately 9.8 million square feet of leasable area and (b) four land and development properties.