Macerich Company (The) (NYSE:MAC) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Macerich Company (The) (NYSE:MAC) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the sixteen brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have assigned a hold recommendation, eight have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $25.75.

MAC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Compass Point restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $26.00 price objective (up from $23.00) on shares of Macerich in a report on Friday, June 26th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Macerich from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Scotiabank upped their price target on Macerich from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Macerich from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Macerich to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th.

Macerich Stock Performance

Shares of Macerich stock opened at $24.73 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $7.01 billion, a PE ratio of -38.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 2.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. Macerich has a 52 week low of $16.03 and a 52 week high of $26.67. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $25.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.22.

Macerich (NYSE:MAC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The real estate investment trust reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $249.71 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $239.77 million. Macerich had a negative net margin of 16.85% and a negative return on equity of 6.26%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.33 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Macerich will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Macerich Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 14th will be given a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 14th. Macerich’s payout ratio is currently -104.62%.

Institutional Trading of Macerich

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Macerich by 76.8% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,347 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 585 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its position in Macerich by 366.2% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,394 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 1,095 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in Macerich by 80.4% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,535 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 684 shares during the period. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Macerich in the third quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of Macerich in the second quarter worth $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.38% of the company’s stock.

Macerich Company Profile

The Macerich Company (NYSE: MAC) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in the acquisition, development, ownership and management of regional shopping centers in the United States. Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, the company focuses on high-quality retail properties, including enclosed malls, open-air centers and mixed-use lifestyle destinations. Since its establishment as a REIT in 1994, Macerich has pursued a disciplined strategy of investing in properties that serve strong consumer demographics and offer long-term growth potential.

Macerich’s core activities encompass property and asset management, leasing, marketing and redevelopment services.