Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS) to Issue $0.59 Quarterly Dividend

Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, December 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 15th will be given a dividend of 0.59 per share by the real estate investment trust on Friday, January 30th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 7.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 15th.

Saul Centers has increased its dividend by an average of 0.0%annually over the last three years. Saul Centers has a dividend payout ratio of 181.5% meaning the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Analysts expect Saul Centers to earn $2.92 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.36 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 80.8%.

Saul Centers Price Performance

Saul Centers stock opened at $29.89 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $729.49 million, a P/E ratio of 25.76 and a beta of 1.03. Saul Centers has a one year low of $29.16 and a one year high of $41.01. The business has a fifty day moving average of $30.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $32.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.29, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 1.51.

Saul Centers (NYSE:BFS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.09. Saul Centers had a net margin of 13.83% and a return on equity of 12.75%. The business had revenue of $72.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $70.74 million. As a group, analysts predict that Saul Centers will post 3.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Saul Centers news, VP John Collich acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $29.99 per share, with a total value of $59,980.00. Following the purchase, the vice president owned 49,260 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,477,307.40. The trade was a 4.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO David Todd Pearson bought 3,348 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $29.86 per share, with a total value of $99,971.28. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief operating officer directly owned 50,567 shares in the company, valued at $1,509,930.62. This represents a 7.09% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders bought 6,548 shares of company stock valued at $184,769. Company insiders own 56.57% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Saul Centers

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Saul Centers by 853.2% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 734 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Saul Centers in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. CWM LLC lifted its stake in Saul Centers by 105.3% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 848 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in Saul Centers by 349.2% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 867 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 674 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new stake in Saul Centers during the 2nd quarter valued at $69,000. 49.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Saul Centers

Saul Centers is a self-managed, self-administered equity REIT headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland. Saul Centers currently operates and manages a real estate portfolio comprised of 61 properties that includes (a) 57 community and neighborhood Shopping Centers and Mixed-Use properties with approximately 9.8 million square feet of leasable area and (b) four land and development properties.