Short Interest in Federal Realty Investment Trust (NYSE:FRT) Increases By 27.9%

Federal Realty Investment Trust (NYSE:FRT) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 3,230,635 shares, an increase of 27.9% from the March 15th total of 2,526,577 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 796,168 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.1 days. Approximately 3.8% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Federal Realty Investment Trust

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of FRT. Norges Bank bought a new position in Federal Realty Investment Trust during the fourth quarter worth $734,290,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Federal Realty Investment Trust by 116.3% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,820,547 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $183,511,000 after buying an additional 979,064 shares during the period. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Federal Realty Investment Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at $51,156,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in Federal Realty Investment Trust by 453.1% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 587,687 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $59,539,000 after buying an additional 481,427 shares during the period. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new stake in Federal Realty Investment Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $46,415,000. Institutional investors own 93.86% of the company’s stock.

Federal Realty Investment Trust Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of FRT stock opened at $110.09 on Thursday. Federal Realty Investment Trust has a 1 year low of $89.99 and a 1 year high of $110.89. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $106.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $101.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.84 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57.

Federal Realty Investment Trust (NYSE:FRT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by ($0.38). Federal Realty Investment Trust had a return on equity of 13.10% and a net margin of 32.14%.The company had revenue of $336.05 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $327.65 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.73 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Federal Realty Investment Trust has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.420-7.520 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Federal Realty Investment Trust will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.

Federal Realty Investment Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 1st were given a dividend of $1.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 1st. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. Federal Realty Investment Trust’s payout ratio is 96.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FRT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Federal Realty Investment Trust from $109.50 to $111.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Federal Realty Investment Trust from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Federal Realty Investment Trust from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Federal Realty Investment Trust from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $107.00 to $114.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, UBS Group set a $113.00 price target on shares of Federal Realty Investment Trust in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $112.43.

About Federal Realty Investment Trust

Federal Realty Investment Trust (NYSE: FRT) is a real estate investment trust specializing in the ownership, management, and redevelopment of high-quality retail, restaurant, and mixed-use properties. With a strategic focus on open-air shopping centers and lifestyle-oriented urban destinations, the company partners with leading national and regional retailers to curate environments that blend shopping, dining, entertainment, office, and residential uses. Its asset management capabilities extend from initial site selection and development through ongoing property operations and tenant relations.

Federal Realty’s portfolio comprises approximately 100 properties totaling more than 25 million square feet of gross leasable area.