Saul Centers (NYSE:BFS) COO David Todd Pearson Purchases 3,348 Shares of Stock

Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS) COO David Todd Pearson acquired 3,348 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $29.86 per share, with a total value of $99,971.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 50,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,509,930.62. This represents a 7.09% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Saul Centers Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE BFS traded up $0.06 during trading on Friday, hitting $29.96. 16,436 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 59,146. The firm has a market capitalization of $731.38 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.70 and a beta of 1.16. Saul Centers, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $29.16 and a fifty-two week high of $41.51. The business’s fifty day moving average is $31.02 and its 200 day moving average is $32.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.16, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.28.

Saul Centers (NYSE:BFS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.09. Saul Centers had a return on equity of 13.79% and a net margin of 15.51%.The firm had revenue of $72.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $70.74 million. Equities research analysts predict that Saul Centers, Inc. 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 was paid on Friday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 15th were issued a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.9%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 15th. Saul Centers’s dividend payout ratio is currently 203.45%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Saul Centers

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in Saul Centers by 853.2% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 734 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 657 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Saul Centers in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of Saul Centers by 105.3% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 848 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 435 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in Saul Centers by 349.2% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 867 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 674 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new stake in Saul Centers during the 2nd quarter valued at about $69,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Saul Centers in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Saul Centers has an average rating of “Hold”.

About Saul Centers

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.