Brixmor Property Group Inc. (NYSE:BRX) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Brixmor Property Group Inc. (NYSE:BRX) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 8,940,000 shares, an increase of 13.9% from the March 31st total of 7,850,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,580,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.5 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Brixmor Property Group news, insider Brian T. Finnegan sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.00, for a total value of $172,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 225,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,176,173. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Brian T. Finnegan sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.00, for a total transaction of $172,500.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 225,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,176,173. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Michael B. Berman sold 10,475 shares of Brixmor Property Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.82, for a total transaction of $239,039.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 40,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $925,487.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Brixmor Property Group during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Brixmor Property Group during the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in Brixmor Property Group by 27.9% during the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,454 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 535 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in Brixmor Property Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $165,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new stake in shares of Brixmor Property Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $172,000. 98.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Brixmor Property Group Price Performance

Shares of BRX traded up $0.43 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $22.15. 2,937,918 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,561,801. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $22.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.19. Brixmor Property Group has a 12-month low of $19.40 and a 12-month high of $24.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.58. The company has a market cap of $6.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.53.

Brixmor Property Group (NYSE:BRX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.27). The business had revenue of $316.49 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $311.77 million. Brixmor Property Group had a return on equity of 10.63% and a net margin of 24.50%. Brixmor Property Group’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. Research analysts expect that Brixmor Property Group will post 2.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Brixmor Property Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 2nd were issued a $0.273 dividend. This is an increase from Brixmor Property Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 1st. This represents a $1.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.93%. Brixmor Property Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 107.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BRX. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Brixmor Property Group in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $27.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Brixmor Property Group from $22.75 to $24.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $24.00 price target (up previously from $23.00) on shares of Brixmor Property Group in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Brixmor Property Group from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 price objective on shares of Brixmor Property Group in a report on Monday, March 25th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $25.38.

Brixmor Property Group Company Profile

Brixmor (NYSE: BRX) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns and operates a high-quality, national portfolio of open-air shopping centers. Its 362 retail centers comprise approximately 64 million square feet of prime retail space in established trade areas. The Company strives to own and operate shopping centers that reflect Brixmor's vision to be the center of the communities we serve and are home to a diverse mix of thriving national, regional and local retailers.