Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) Upgraded at StockNews.com

Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Thursday.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on SPG. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Simon Property Group from $144.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 21st. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Simon Property Group from $148.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 20th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Simon Property Group from $143.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Simon Property Group from $142.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Simon Property Group from $139.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Simon Property Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.22.

Simon Property Group Stock Performance

SPG stock opened at $140.44 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.54. Simon Property Group has a twelve month low of $100.17 and a twelve month high of $157.82. The business’s fifty day moving average is $149.36 and its 200-day moving average is $135.48. The company has a market cap of $45.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.39 and a beta of 1.65.

Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.34 by ($1.05). The company had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.38 billion. Simon Property Group had a return on equity of 70.97% and a net margin of 42.30%. Simon Property Group’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.15 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Simon Property Group will post 12.06 EPS for the current year.

Simon Property Group declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, February 8th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the real estate investment trust to reacquire up to 4.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Simon Property Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Simon Property Group during the fourth quarter worth $2,561,181,000. Cowa LLC acquired a new stake in Simon Property Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $107,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Simon Property Group by 13,226.4% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 920,586 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $131,312,000 after purchasing an additional 913,678 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Simon Property Group by 10.4% during the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,144,366 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $910,337,000 after purchasing an additional 765,146 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in Simon Property Group by 527.3% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 804,952 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $105,899,000 after buying an additional 676,627 shares during the last quarter. 93.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Simon Property Group Company Profile

Simon is a real estate investment trust engaged in the ownership of premier shopping, dining, entertainment and mixed-use destinations and an S&P 100 company (Simon Property Group, NYSE: SPG). Our properties across North America, Europe and Asia provide community gathering places for millions of people every day and generate billions in annual sales.