SL Green Realty (NYSE:SLG) Rating Lowered to “Strong Sell” at Zacks Research

SL Green Realty (NYSE:SLG) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on SLG. Jefferies Financial Group raised SL Green Realty from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $57.00 to $63.00 in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of SL Green Realty in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on SL Green Realty from $62.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on SL Green Realty from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on SL Green Realty from $58.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, SL Green Realty presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.94.

SL Green Realty Stock Up 0.5%

NYSE:SLG traded up $0.23 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $48.30. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 34,214 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,010,376. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 4,798.80 and a beta of 1.60. SL Green Realty has a 52-week low of $40.26 and a 52-week high of $68.14. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $46.35 and a 200-day moving average of $53.87. The company has a current ratio of 3.22, a quick ratio of 3.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

SL Green Realty (NYSE:SLG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 16th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.24. SL Green Realty had a net margin of 1.75% and a negative return on equity of 0.22%. The business had revenue of $244.82 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $170.27 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.26 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that SL Green Realty will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Andrew S. Levine sold 1,493 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.27, for a total transaction of $67,588.11. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 7,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $318,927.15. This trade represents a 17.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc Holliday sold 22,223 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.40, for a total value of $986,701.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 9,698 shares in the company, valued at approximately $430,591.20. This represents a 69.62% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 5.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in SL Green Realty by 74.8% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 26,883 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,519,000 after acquiring an additional 11,506 shares during the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association bought a new stake in shares of SL Green Realty during the 1st quarter worth $253,000. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of SL Green Realty by 10.9% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,374 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $425,000 after buying an additional 722 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of SL Green Realty in the 2nd quarter valued at about $225,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its stake in SL Green Realty by 2.6% during the second quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 102,589 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $6,350,000 after purchasing an additional 2,586 shares during the period. 89.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

SL Green Realty Company Profile

SL Green Realty Corp. (NYSE: SLG) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) focused primarily on the acquisition, management and development of commercial office properties in Manhattan. As one of New York City’s largest office landlords, the company’s portfolio includes Class A office buildings and mixed-use projects located in prime Midtown and Downtown submarkets. SL Green generates revenue through leasing office space to a diverse mix of tenants spanning financial services, technology, media and professional services firms.

Founded in 1980 by real estate investor Stephen L.