Alexander & Baldwin (NYSE:ALEX) Shares Gap Up After Earnings Beat

Shares of Alexander & Baldwin, Inc. (NYSE:ALEX) gapped up before the market opened on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $18.00, but opened at $18.62. Alexander & Baldwin shares last traded at $18.84, with a volume of 53,461 shares.

The financial services provider reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.15. Alexander & Baldwin had a return on equity of 5.93% and a net margin of 19.64%. The business had revenue of $62.45 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $49.68 million.

Alexander & Baldwin Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.225 dividend. This is an increase from Alexander & Baldwin’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.75%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Alexander & Baldwin’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 145.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Alexander & Baldwin from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. StockNews.com upgraded Alexander & Baldwin from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Alexander & Baldwin in a research report on Monday, January 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $23.00.

Institutional Trading of Alexander & Baldwin

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALEX. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Alexander & Baldwin by 19.9% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 3,447 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 572 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in Alexander & Baldwin by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 27,594 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $490,000 after acquiring an additional 615 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC grew its position in Alexander & Baldwin by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 33,607 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $596,000 after acquiring an additional 648 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Alexander & Baldwin by 5.2% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 13,732 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $264,000 after acquiring an additional 683 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Alexander & Baldwin by 34.8% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,818 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 727 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.29% of the company’s stock.

Alexander & Baldwin Stock Up 5.3 %

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $17.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.43 and a beta of 1.29.

About Alexander & Baldwin

Alexander & Baldwin, Inc engages in the real estate business. It operates through the Commercial Real Estate and Land Operations segments. The Commercial Real Estate segment includes investments and acquisitions, construction and development, and in-house leasing and property management. The Land Operations segment consists of legacy landholdings, assets, and liabilities subject to the company’s simplification and monetization effort.