Macerich Company (The) (NYSE:MAC) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Macerich Company (The) (NYSE:MAC) was the target of a large growth in short interest in June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totaling 25,563,120 shares, a growth of 96.4% from the June 15th total of 13,015,731 shares. Currently, 9.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 6,388,445 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.0 days.

Macerich Trading Up 2.7%

NYSE MAC traded up $0.68 on Thursday, hitting $25.85. 1,591,985 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,739,907. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.33 billion, a P/E ratio of -36.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 2.06. Macerich has a 52-week low of $15.94 and a 52-week high of $25.97. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $23.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $20.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.83.

Macerich (NYSE:MAC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $241.54 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $233.06 million. Macerich had a negative net margin of 18.22% and a negative return on equity of 6.95%. The firm’s revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.33 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Macerich will post 1.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Macerich Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. Macerich’s dividend payout ratio is currently -95.77%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Macerich by 76.8% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,347 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 585 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in Macerich by 366.2% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,394 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,095 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in Macerich by 80.4% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,535 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 684 shares during the period. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new stake in Macerich during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its stake in Macerich by 156.6% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 2,189 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,336 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Macerich from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Macerich from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Macerich from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Macerich from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $20.00 to $27.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Evercore set a $24.00 target price on shares of Macerich in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $25.14.

About Macerich

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.