Boston Properties (NYSE:BXP) Hits New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Boston Properties, Inc. (NYSE:BXP)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low on Monday . The company traded as low as $56.44 and last traded at $57.39, with a volume of 84114 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $60.42.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BXP has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Boston Properties in a research note on Monday, March 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $78.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Boston Properties from $92.00 to $86.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Boston Properties from $88.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Boston Properties from $85.00 to $83.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Wedbush lowered Boston Properties from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Boston Properties presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $80.85.

Boston Properties Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $9.24 billion, a PE ratio of 584.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 5.51 and a current ratio of 5.69. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $69.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $75.75.

Boston Properties (NYSE:BXP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $1.28. Boston Properties had a net margin of 0.38% and a return on equity of 3.90%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Boston Properties, Inc. will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Boston Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.71%. Boston Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 3,920.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Boston Properties

In related news, EVP Hilary J. Spann sold 12,379 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.02, for a total value of $891,535.58. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,271 shares in the company, valued at approximately $523,657.42. The trade was a 63.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Donna D. Garesche sold 2,143 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.87, for a total transaction of $145,445.41. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.35% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Deutsche Bank AG raised its holdings in shares of Boston Properties by 30.6% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 949,603 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $70,612,000 after purchasing an additional 222,284 shares during the period. Kelly Lawrence W & Associates Inc. CA increased its position in Boston Properties by 75.4% during the 4th quarter. Kelly Lawrence W & Associates Inc. CA now owns 2,500 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,075 shares in the last quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new position in Boston Properties in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Heritage Trust Co acquired a new position in Boston Properties during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $210,000. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Boston Properties during the fourth quarter worth approximately $94,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.72% of the company’s stock.

Boston Properties Company Profile

Boston Properties, Inc (NYSE: BXP) (BXP or the Company) is the largest publicly traded developer, owner, and manager of premier workplaces in the United States, concentrated in six dynamic gateway markets – Boston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington, DC. BXP has delivered places that power progress for our clients and communities for more than 50 years.