Zacks Investment Management Buys Shares of 16,725 Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS)

Zacks Investment Management bought a new stake in Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 16,725 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $702,000. Zacks Investment Management owned approximately 0.07% of Saul Centers at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Saul Centers during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Whittier Trust Co. acquired a new position in shares of Saul Centers during the 2nd quarter valued at about $74,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Saul Centers during the 2nd quarter valued at about $102,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in shares of Saul Centers by 235.4% during the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 3,223 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $119,000 after acquiring an additional 2,262 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Saul Centers during the 3rd quarter valued at about $202,000. 49.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Saul Centers Stock Up 0.5 %

BFS opened at $40.44 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $40.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.17. The company has a market cap of $977.35 million, a PE ratio of 21.98 and a beta of 1.11. Saul Centers, Inc. has a 1 year low of $34.87 and a 1 year high of $42.39. 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 Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be given a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.84%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 15th. Saul Centers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 128.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. B. Riley upped their price objective on shares of Saul Centers from $43.50 to $45.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Saul Centers from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th.

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.