CTO Realty Growth, Inc. (NYSE:CTO) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

CTO Realty Growth, Inc. (NYSE:CTO) saw a large increase in short interest in August. As of August 14th, there was short interest totaling 1,746,153 shares, an increase of 70.2% from the July 30th total of 1,025,694 shares. Currently, 4.9% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 364,403 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.8 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CTO has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded CTO Realty Growth from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of CTO Realty Growth from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. JonesTrading lifted their target price on shares of CTO Realty Growth from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $25.00 price target on shares of CTO Realty Growth in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Huntington assumed coverage on shares of CTO Realty Growth in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $24.00 price target for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have assigned a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $24.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CTO Realty Growth

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CTO. Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its position in CTO Realty Growth by 231.9% in the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,789 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,250 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CTO Realty Growth during the third quarter worth about $37,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of CTO Realty Growth during the second quarter worth about $70,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in shares of CTO Realty Growth by 51.7% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,654 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 1,245 shares during the period. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of CTO Realty Growth in the second quarter valued at approximately $120,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.18% of the company’s stock.

CTO Realty Growth Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of CTO Realty Growth stock traded down $0.27 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $21.30. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 440,908 shares, compared to its average volume of 321,546. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $21.74 and a 200-day moving average of $20.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 8.69 and a current ratio of 8.69. The stock has a market cap of $798.54 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.66 and a beta of 0.60. CTO Realty Growth has a twelve month low of $15.06 and a twelve month high of $22.71.

CTO Realty Growth (NYSE:CTO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $43.83 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $42.31 million. CTO Realty Growth had a net margin of 32.63% and a return on equity of 8.90%. CTO Realty Growth has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.210-2.250 EPS. Research analysts forecast that CTO Realty Growth will post 2.12 EPS for the current year.

CTO Realty Growth Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 10th will be paid a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 10th. CTO Realty Growth’s payout ratio is 111.76%.

About CTO Realty Growth

CTO Realty Growth, Inc is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in single-tenant net lease properties. The company’s primary focus is on acquiring, owning and managing retail assets leased to creditworthy operators under long-term, triple-net lease agreements. By targeting essential retail segments, CTO Realty Growth seeks to generate stable, inflation-protected income streams while maintaining a disciplined investment approach.

The REIT’s portfolio is concentrated in convenience store and fuel service locations, with additional assets in other retail categories where net lease structures prevail.