Macerich (NYSE:MAC) Reaches New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Macerich Company (The) (NYSE:MAC) shares reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $24.63 and last traded at $24.4050, with a volume of 3453011 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $23.39.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MAC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Macerich from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Macerich from a “sell (d)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Macerich from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $27.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. KeyCorp set a $25.00 price objective on shares of Macerich and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Macerich from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.54.

Macerich Trading Up 4.3%

The firm has a market cap of $6.38 billion, a P/E ratio of -34.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 2.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $21.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $19.69.

Macerich (NYSE:MAC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $241.54 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $233.06 million. Macerich had a negative net margin of 18.22% and a negative return on equity of 6.95%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.33 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Macerich Company will post 1.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Macerich Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Macerich’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -95.77%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Macerich

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of MAC. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Macerich by 76.8% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,347 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 585 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Macerich by 366.2% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,394 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,095 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Macerich by 80.4% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,535 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 684 shares in the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Macerich in the third quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its stake in shares of Macerich by 156.6% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 2,189 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,336 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.38% of the company’s stock.

Macerich Company Profile

The Macerich Company (NYSE: MAC) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in the acquisition, development, ownership and management of regional shopping centers in the United States. Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, the company focuses on high-quality retail properties, including enclosed malls, open-air centers and mixed-use lifestyle destinations. Since its establishment as a REIT in 1994, Macerich has pursued a disciplined strategy of investing in properties that serve strong consumer demographics and offer long-term growth potential.

Macerich’s core activities encompass property and asset management, leasing, marketing and redevelopment services.