Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC Sells 9,047 Shares of Brixmor Property Group Inc. (NYSE:BRX)

Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC lessened its stake in Brixmor Property Group Inc. (NYSE:BRX) by 0.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,198,672 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 9,047 shares during the quarter. Brixmor Property Group comprises 1.8% of Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC owned 0.40% of Brixmor Property Group worth $33,395,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Brixmor Property Group by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 440,803 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $12,297,000 after acquiring an additional 13,006 shares in the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP boosted its holdings in shares of Brixmor Property Group by 402.5% in the 3rd quarter. Centiva Capital LP now owns 47,219 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,316,000 after purchasing an additional 37,823 shares in the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Brixmor Property Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $241,000. Bamco Inc. NY bought a new position in shares of Brixmor Property Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $7,109,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Brixmor Property Group during the 3rd quarter worth $337,000. 98.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Brixmor Property Group

In other news, insider Steven F. Siegel sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.54, for a total transaction of $738,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 315,004 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,305,218.16. This represents a 7.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Mizuho lifted their target price on Brixmor Property Group from $23.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Brixmor Property Group from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Brixmor Property Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Brixmor Property Group from $25.50 to $27.50 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on Brixmor Property Group from $29.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $29.38.

Brixmor Property Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BRX opened at $29.77 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85. The stock has a market cap of $8.99 billion, a PE ratio of 27.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 1.58. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $28.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $25.84. Brixmor Property Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $20.80 and a 1-year high of $30.67.

Brixmor Property Group (NYSE:BRX) last released its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.21). Brixmor Property Group had a net margin of 25.81% and a return on equity of 11.48%. The business had revenue of $320.68 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $320.22 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.50 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Brixmor Property Group Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brixmor Property Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd will be issued a $0.287 dividend. This is an increase from Brixmor Property Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.15 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. Brixmor Property Group’s payout ratio is 100.93%.

About Brixmor Property Group

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.