EP Wealth Advisors LLC Buys 350 Shares of Public Storage (NYSE:PSA)

EP Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Public Storage (NYSE:PSA) by 18.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,281 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Public Storage were worth $662,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its stake in Public Storage by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 1,139 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $347,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC increased its position in Public Storage by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,562 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $476,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Signet Financial Management LLC increased its position in Public Storage by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Signet Financial Management LLC now owns 1,913 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $555,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its stake in Public Storage by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 1,222 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $354,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Public Storage by 3.5% in the first quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $357,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on PSA shares. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Public Storage from $289.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Public Storage from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Public Storage from $289.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Public Storage from $330.00 to $327.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 20th. Finally, Raymond James upgraded shares of Public Storage from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $330.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $310.55.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Public Storage news, insider Nathaniel A. Vitan sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.29, for a total transaction of $109,716.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,214 shares in the company, valued at $881,568.06. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Nathaniel A. Vitan sold 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.29, for a total transaction of $109,716.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,214 shares in the company, valued at $881,568.06. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Kristy Pipes purchased 2,149 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $278.96 per share, for a total transaction of $599,485.04. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,149 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $599,485.04. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 11.00% of the company’s stock.

Public Storage Stock Performance

PSA stock traded up $5.82 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $300.74. The company had a trading volume of 366,832 shares, compared to its average volume of 709,500. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $286.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $282.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.54. Public Storage has a 12 month low of $233.18 and a 12 month high of $314.93. The firm has a market cap of $52.85 billion, a PE ratio of 26.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 0.65.

Public Storage Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 12th were issued a dividend of $3.00 per share. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.99%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 12th. Public Storage’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 108.99%.

Public Storage Profile

Public Storage, a member of the S&P 500 and FT Global 500, is a REIT that primarily acquires, develops, owns, and operates self-storage facilities. At December 31, 2023, we had: (i) interests in 3,044 self-storage facilities located in 40 states with approximately 218 million net rentable square feet in the United States and (ii) a 35% common equity interest in Shurgard Self Storage Limited (Euronext Brussels: SHUR), which owned 275 self-storage facilities located in seven Western European nations with approximately 15 million net rentable square feet operated under the Shurgard brand.