Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) Shares Sold by Sumitomo Life Insurance Co.

Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. trimmed its position in Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 4,401 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 159 shares during the period. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co.’s holdings in Simon Property Group were worth $758,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Simon Property Group in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Simon Property Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $42,000. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in Simon Property Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Simon Property Group in the third quarter valued at about $52,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its stake in Simon Property Group by 107.5% during the third quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 413 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.01% of the company’s stock.

Simon Property Group Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:SPG opened at $173.86 on Thursday. Simon Property Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $135.15 and a fifty-two week high of $186.00. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $176.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $169.30. The company has a quick ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.20. The stock has a market cap of $56.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.26 and a beta of 1.75.

Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 1st. The real estate investment trust reported $1.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.00 by ($1.54). The firm had revenue of $1.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.32 billion. Simon Property Group had a return on equity of 76.21% and a net margin of 43.36%. Simon Property Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.20 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Simon Property Group, Inc. will post 12.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Simon Property Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.83%. This is an increase from Simon Property Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. Simon Property Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 111.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on SPG. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Simon Property Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $179.00 to $198.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Simon Property Group from $158.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com lowered Simon Property Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Simon Property Group in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $195.00 target price for the company. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $172.10.

Insider Transactions at Simon Property Group

In related news, Director Reuben S. Leibowitz purchased 465 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 30th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $168.59 per share, for a total transaction of $78,394.35. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 55,919 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,427,384.21. This trade represents a 0.84 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 8.50% of the company’s stock.

About Simon Property Group

Simon Property Group, Inc (NYSE:SPG) is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT). Simon Property Group, L.P., or the Operating Partnership, is our majority-owned partnership subsidiary that owns all of our real estate properties and other assets. In this package, the terms Simon, we, our, or the Company refer to Simon Property Group, Inc, the Operating Partnership, and its subsidiaries.