STAG Industrial, Inc. (NYSE:STAG) Short Interest Up 26.0% in February

STAG Industrial, Inc. (NYSE:STAG) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 4,020,000 shares, an increase of 26.0% from the February 13th total of 3,190,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,290,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.1 days. Approximately 2.2% of the company’s shares are short sold.

STAG Industrial Stock Performance

STAG traded down $0.40 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $35.42. 1,223,401 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,063,881. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.61 billion, a PE ratio of 34.05 and a beta of 1.05. The company’s 50-day moving average is $34.88 and its 200 day moving average is $36.36. STAG Industrial has a 52 week low of $32.27 and a 52 week high of $41.63.

STAG Industrial (NYSE:STAG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.43. STAG Industrial had a net margin of 24.64% and a return on equity of 5.51%. On average, research analysts expect that STAG Industrial will post 2.47 EPS for the current year.

STAG Industrial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.1242 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 4.25%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This is a boost from STAG Industrial’s previous dividend of $0.12. STAG Industrial’s dividend payout ratio is 143.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of STAG Industrial from $40.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Raymond James upped their target price on shares of STAG Industrial from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of STAG Industrial from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $40.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at STAG Industrial

In other news, Director Benjamin S. Butcher sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.10, for a total value of $1,755,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 9,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $338,083.20. This represents a 83.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On STAG Industrial

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in STAG. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of STAG Industrial by 145.5% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,936,107 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $271,132,000 after purchasing an additional 4,111,268 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in STAG Industrial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $75,471,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in STAG Industrial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $57,561,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in STAG Industrial by 442.2% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,364,411 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $46,144,000 after buying an additional 1,112,757 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in STAG Industrial by 330.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,346,149 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $52,823,000 after buying an additional 1,033,485 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.67% of the company’s stock.

STAG Industrial Company Profile

STAG Industrial, Inc is a real estate investment company, which engages in acquiring, owning, and managing single-tenant, industrial real estate assets. It offers industrial real estate operating platform to real estate ownership. The company was founded by Benjamin S. Butcher on July 21, 2010 and is headquartered in Boston, MA.