Safehold (NYSE:SAFE) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Safehold Inc. (NYSE:SAFE) shares gapped down prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $14.98, but opened at $14.42. Safehold shares last traded at $14.3450, with a volume of 59,463 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SAFE has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Safehold in a report on Saturday, November 22nd. Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Safehold in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Safehold in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Safehold from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut Safehold from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $16.00 to $14.00 in a research note on Thursday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $19.00.

Safehold Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.84. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $13.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $14.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 36.91 and a quick ratio of 36.91.

Safehold (NYSE:SAFE) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $96.16 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $95.25 million. Safehold had a return on equity of 4.78% and a net margin of 29.67%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.37 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Safehold Inc. will post 1.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Safehold Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 30th were given a dividend of $0.177 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 30th. This represents a $0.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.0%. Safehold’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.22%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Safehold

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its position in Safehold by 13.8% during the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 5,735 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,000 after acquiring an additional 695 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in shares of Safehold by 39.9% during the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,604 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 743 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Safehold by 5.6% during the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,462 shares of the company’s stock worth $256,000 after purchasing an additional 878 shares in the last quarter. Aberdeen Group plc increased its holdings in shares of Safehold by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 19,892 shares of the company’s stock worth $272,000 after purchasing an additional 922 shares during the period. Finally, State of Tennessee Department of Treasury raised its position in shares of Safehold by 6.0% in the second quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 18,567 shares of the company’s stock valued at $289,000 after buying an additional 1,048 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.38% of the company’s stock.

About Safehold

Safehold Inc is a real estate investment trust that seeks to redefine land ownership for commercial property owners. The company acquires perpetual ground leases from landowners and structures long-term leaseback arrangements, enabling building owners to unlock the value of underlying land without relinquishing operational control of their properties. By separating land ownership from building ownership, Safehold offers an alternative to traditional mortgage financing and land sale–leaseback transactions.

Safehold’s portfolio spans multiple commercial real estate sectors, including office, multifamily, industrial and retail, with a focus on high-quality properties in major U.S.