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 stock traded as high as $24.63 and last traded at $24.4050, with a volume of 3453011 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $23.39.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MAC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Macerich from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $20.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Macerich from a “sell (d)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Macerich from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of Macerich from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Macerich from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $22.54.

Macerich Trading Up 4.3%

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

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

Macerich Announces Dividend

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Macerich

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MAC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Macerich by 73.2% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 11,521,554 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $209,692,000 after purchasing an additional 4,868,844 shares during the last quarter. Centersquare Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Macerich by 149.6% during the fourth quarter. Centersquare Investment Management LLC now owns 6,354,661 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $117,307,000 after purchasing an additional 3,808,336 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Macerich during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $66,924,000. Resolution Capital Ltd lifted its position in Macerich by 204.0% during the first quarter. Resolution Capital Ltd now owns 4,384,180 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $82,861,000 after purchasing an additional 2,941,909 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Macerich by 139.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,675,803 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $67,855,000 after purchasing an additional 2,142,737 shares during the last quarter. 87.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.