Short Interest in Sun Communities, Inc. (NYSE:SUI) Rises By 55.8%

Sun Communities, Inc. (NYSE:SUI) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,050,000 shares, a growth of 55.8% from the August 31st total of 2,600,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 723,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.6 days.

Sun Communities Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:SUI opened at $135.56 on Friday. Sun Communities has a 52-week low of $102.74 and a 52-week high of $147.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 116.86, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 1.42. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $133.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $125.39.

Sun Communities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.77%. Sun Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 324.14%.

Insider Transactions at Sun Communities

In other Sun Communities news, CEO Baxter Underwood sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.43, for a total value of $394,290.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 63,462 shares in the company, valued at $8,340,810.66. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.89% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Sun Communities

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sun Communities during the 2nd quarter worth $346,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Sun Communities by 15.5% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 762 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Liberty Mutual Group Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Sun Communities by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter. Liberty Mutual Group Asset Management Inc. now owns 33,293 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,006,000 after purchasing an additional 1,665 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its position in Sun Communities by 118.2% during the second quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 7,055 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $849,000 after purchasing an additional 3,821 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MBB Public Markets I LLC bought a new stake in Sun Communities during the second quarter valued at about $1,083,000. 99.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on SUI shares. Evercore ISI cut Sun Communities from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $144.00 to $149.00 in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Sun Communities from $123.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Sun Communities from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Sun Communities from $131.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on Sun Communities from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $140.91.

Sun Communities Company Profile

Established in 1975, Sun Communities, Inc became a publicly owned corporation in December 1993. The Company is a fully integrated REIT listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol: SUI. As of December 31, 2023, the Company owned, operated, or had an interest in a portfolio of 667 developed MH, RV and Marina properties comprising 179,310 developed sites and approximately 48,030 wet slips and dry storage spaces in the U.S., the UK and Canada.