Franklin Resources Inc. Takes $4.42 Million Position in UMH Properties, Inc. (NYSE:UMH)

Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new position in shares of UMH Properties, Inc. (NYSE:UMH) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 236,025 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $4,421,000. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.30% of UMH Properties at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UMH. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in shares of UMH Properties by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 31,304 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $614,000 after acquiring an additional 663 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in UMH Properties by 36.8% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,596 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 698 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in UMH Properties by 6.4% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 18,445 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 1,111 shares in the last quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its position in UMH Properties by 2.4% during the second quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 48,046 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $768,000 after purchasing an additional 1,124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Centiva Capital LP grew its holdings in UMH Properties by 4.0% in the third quarter. Centiva Capital LP now owns 31,428 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $618,000 after purchasing an additional 1,195 shares during the last quarter. 75.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UMH Properties Price Performance

UMH stock opened at $18.92 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 145.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 8.48 and a current ratio of 8.48. UMH Properties, Inc. has a 1 year low of $14.09 and a 1 year high of $20.64. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $19.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.42.

UMH Properties (NYSE:UMH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by ($0.13). UMH Properties had a net margin of 11.81% and a return on equity of 6.06%. The firm had revenue of $60.67 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $61.57 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.22 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that UMH Properties, Inc. will post 0.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UMH Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a dividend of $0.215 per share. This represents a $0.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. UMH Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 661.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of UMH Properties from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.25.

Insider Activity

In other UMH Properties news, Director Angela D. Pruitt sold 2,800 shares of UMH Properties stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.26, for a total value of $53,928.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,993 shares in the company, valued at $153,945.18. The trade was a 25.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Samuel A. Landy sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.55, for a total value of $977,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,104,826 shares in the company, valued at $21,599,348.30. This represents a 4.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 53,845 shares of company stock worth $1,051,210. 8.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About UMH Properties

UMH Properties, Inc, which was organized in 1968, is a public equity REIT that owns and operates 135 manufactured home communities containing approximately 25,800 developed homesites. These communities are located in New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Indiana, Michigan, Maryland, Alabama, South Carolina and Georgia.