Sabra Health Care REIT, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBRA) Short Interest Down 16.7% in February

Sabra Health Care REIT, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBRA) was the target of a significant drop in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 17,050,000 shares, a drop of 16.7% from the February 13th total of 20,470,000 shares. Currently, 7.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,130,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 8.0 days.

Sabra Health Care REIT Stock Performance

NASDAQ SBRA opened at $17.61 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $16.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $17.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.19 billion, a PE ratio of 33.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 4.32 and a quick ratio of 4.16. Sabra Health Care REIT has a 1 year low of $13.31 and a 1 year high of $20.03.

Sabra Health Care REIT (NASDAQ:SBRA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36. Sabra Health Care REIT had a return on equity of 4.60% and a net margin of 18.02%. The company had revenue of $182.35 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $178.01 million. Analysts predict that Sabra Health Care REIT will post 1.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sabra Health Care REIT Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Sabra Health Care REIT’s payout ratio is 226.42%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Comprehensive Money Management Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Sabra Health Care REIT in the 4th quarter worth $333,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in Sabra Health Care REIT in the fourth quarter worth $14,241,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Sabra Health Care REIT during the fourth quarter valued at about $348,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its stake in Sabra Health Care REIT by 22.1% during the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 289,870 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,021,000 after purchasing an additional 52,441 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new position in shares of Sabra Health Care REIT in the 4th quarter worth about $74,000. 99.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on SBRA shares. Citizens Jmp raised shares of Sabra Health Care REIT from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and set a $20.00 price target on shares of Sabra Health Care REIT in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. JMP Securities upgraded shares of Sabra Health Care REIT from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $20.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on Sabra Health Care REIT from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sabra Health Care REIT has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $19.33.

About Sabra Health Care REIT

Sabra Health Care REIT, Inc engages in the business of acquiring, financing, and owning real estate property. The company was founded on May 10, 2010 and is headquartered in Tustin, CA.