The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Invests $202,000 in Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in shares of Saul Centers, Inc. (NYSE:BFS) during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 4,821 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $202,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BFS. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Saul Centers by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 9,668 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $355,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the period. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Saul Centers during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp grew its position in shares of Saul Centers by 9.9% in the 2nd quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 11,383 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $419,000 after buying an additional 1,028 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Saul Centers by 9.0% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 19,616 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $823,000 after acquiring an additional 1,627 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its position in shares of Saul Centers by 6.2% in the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 28,488 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,048,000 after purchasing an additional 1,651 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com raised Saul Centers from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. B. Riley lifted their price target on shares of Saul Centers from $43.50 to $45.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd.

Saul Centers Stock Performance

Shares of BFS stock opened at $40.15 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $40.25 and its 200 day moving average is $39.26. Saul Centers, Inc. has a one year low of $34.87 and a one year high of $42.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.61, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. The company has a market capitalization of $970.47 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.87 and a beta of 1.11.

Saul Centers Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 15th. Saul Centers’s payout ratio is currently 128.26%.

Saul Centers Profile

Saul Centers is a self-managed, self-administered equity REIT headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland. Saul Centers currently operates and manages a real estate portfolio comprised of 61 properties that includes (a) 57 community and neighborhood Shopping Centers and Mixed-Use properties with approximately 9.8 million square feet of leasable area and (b) four land and development properties.