SL Green Realty Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:SLG)

SL Green Realty Corporation (NYSE:SLG) saw some unusual options trading activity on Monday. Stock traders acquired 11,231 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 465% compared to the typical volume of 1,988 put options.

SL Green Realty Trading Up 4.4%

Shares of SL Green Realty stock opened at $46.81 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $53.75 and its 200 day moving average is $57.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.34 billion, a PE ratio of 4,685.19 and a beta of 1.75. SL Green Realty has a 1 year low of $42.92 and a 1 year high of $79.51. The company has a current ratio of 3.22, a quick ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

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

SL Green Realty Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 28th will be given a dividend of $0.2575 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 28th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.6%. SL Green Realty’s payout ratio is currently 30,900.00%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Carol N. Brown sold 937 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.09, for a total transaction of $59,115.33. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 5.04% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SL Green Realty

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ethic Inc. lifted its position in shares of SL Green Realty by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 8,132 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $486,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System increased its position in shares of SL Green Realty by 0.6% during the second quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 33,200 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,055,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. MAI Capital Management raised its stake in SL Green Realty by 25.9% during the second quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 988 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank lifted its holdings in SL Green Realty by 1.2% in the second quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 20,245 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,253,000 after buying an additional 235 shares during the period. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in SL Green Realty by 4.7% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 5,324 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $307,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on SLG shares. Citigroup upgraded SL Green Realty from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $65.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Friday, September 12th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on SL Green Realty from $72.00 to $63.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Scotiabank set a $66.00 price objective on shares of SL Green Realty and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of SL Green Realty from $64.00 to $61.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 17th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH assumed coverage on shares of SL Green Realty in a research report on Monday, October 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $63.00 target price for the company. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $64.33.

About SL Green Realty

3SL Green Realty Corp., Manhattan’s largest office landlord, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust, or REIT, that is focused primarily on acquiring, managing and maximizing value of Manhattan commercial properties. As of June 30, 2022, SL Green held interests in 64 buildings totaling 34.4 million square feet.