Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Brixmor Property Group Inc. (NYSE:BRX)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Brixmor Property Group Inc. (NYSE:BRX) by 32.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 171,190 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 83,750 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Brixmor Property Group were worth $4,766,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BRX. Glenmede Trust Co. NA raised its stake in Brixmor Property Group by 222.1% in the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 37,706 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,050,000 after buying an additional 26,000 shares in the last quarter. Vestcor Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Brixmor Property Group during the third quarter worth about $776,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Brixmor Property Group by 3.3% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,959,993 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $138,185,000 after buying an additional 159,388 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Brixmor Property Group by 95.0% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 25,852 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $720,000 after buying an additional 12,593 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Brixmor Property Group during the fourth quarter worth about $620,000. 98.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Brixmor Property Group Stock Performance

NYSE:BRX opened at $25.61 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $26.64 and its 200-day moving average is $27.59. Brixmor Property Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $20.80 and a 52-week high of $30.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16. The company has a market cap of $7.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.07, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.59.

Brixmor Property Group (NYSE:BRX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.31. Brixmor Property Group had a net margin of 26.40% and a return on equity of 11.72%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Brixmor Property Group Inc. will post 2.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Brixmor Property Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be issued a $0.2875 dividend. This is a positive change from Brixmor Property Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.49%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. Brixmor Property Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 103.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BRX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised Brixmor Property Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $28.00 to $33.00 in a report on Friday, February 14th. Scotiabank cut their price objective on Brixmor Property Group from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Brixmor Property Group from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Brixmor Property Group from $31.75 to $31.25 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised shares of Brixmor Property Group from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $31.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $30.56.

About Brixmor Property Group

Brixmor Property Group, Inc operates as a real estate investment trust, which engages in owning and operating a portfolio of grocery anchored community and neighborhood shopping centers. The company was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in New York, NY.