Saul Centers (NYSE:BFS) Stock Price Passes Above 200-Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS)’s share price passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $34.34 and traded as high as $35.80. Saul Centers shares last traded at $35.3730, with a volume of 89,227 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Saul Centers in a report on Monday, May 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Saul Centers Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $36.04 and a 200 day moving average of $34.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $868.05 million, a PE ratio of 33.37 and a beta of 0.90.

Saul Centers (NYSE:BFS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.13. Saul Centers had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 12.44%. The company had revenue of $74.64 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $75.11 million.

Saul Centers Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be paid a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 15th. Saul Centers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 222.64%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Saul Centers news, COO David Todd Pearson purchased 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $34.74 per share, for a total transaction of $90,324.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 79,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,755,611.54. The trade was a 3.39% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 51.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Saul Centers in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of Saul Centers by 35.8% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,444 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 381 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in Saul Centers by 82.9% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,412 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 640 shares in the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Saul Centers during the fourth quarter worth approximately $54,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in Saul Centers by 450.6% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,795 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 1,469 shares during the last quarter. 49.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Saul Centers

Saul Centers, Inc is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in the ownership, development and management of retail properties. The company’s portfolio is focused on grocery-anchored and necessity-based shopping centers, providing stable, long-term cash flows through leasing arrangements with national and regional retailers. In addition to ground-up development, Saul Centers actively pursues redevelopment and adaptive reuse projects to enhance value in existing assets.

Founded by the Saul family in 1945, Saul Centers has grown from a local real estate development firm into a listed REIT while maintaining its headquarters in Bethesda, Maryland.