Net Lease Office Properties (NYSE:NLOP) Short Interest Up 31.3% in March

Net Lease Office Properties (NYSE:NLOP) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 641,697 shares, a growth of 31.3% from the March 15th total of 488,839 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 243,268 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days. Currently, 4.4% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on NLOP. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Net Lease Office Properties in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Net Lease Office Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Sell”.

Net Lease Office Properties Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NLOP traded up $0.05 during trading on Friday, hitting $12.81. The stock had a trading volume of 92,584 shares, compared to its average volume of 280,371. Net Lease Office Properties has a 12-month low of $11.23 and a 12-month high of $34.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $189.69 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.31 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 2.19, a current ratio of 2.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $14.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $21.82.

Net Lease Office Properties Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a special dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 30th were issued a dividend of $3.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 30th. Net Lease Office Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -3.47%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Net Lease Office Properties by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 25,006 shares of the company’s stock valued at $645,000 after buying an additional 3,230 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Net Lease Office Properties by 337.6% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 163,651 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,221,000 after buying an additional 126,250 shares in the last quarter. Man Group plc increased its holdings in Net Lease Office Properties by 143.8% in the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 57,912 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,494,000 after buying an additional 34,159 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Net Lease Office Properties by 52.7% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 14,688 shares of the company’s stock valued at $379,000 after buying an additional 5,071 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sandia Investment Management LP purchased a new position in Net Lease Office Properties in the fourth quarter valued at $86,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.33% of the company’s stock.

About Net Lease Office Properties

Net Lease Office Properties (NYSE:NLOP) is a real estate investment trust organized to acquire and manage single-tenant office properties subject to long-term net leases. The company seeks to generate stable, contracting cash flows by entering into sale-leaseback transactions and investment-grade lease agreements with corporate tenants. NLOP’s portfolio is intended to provide investors with exposure to a diversified base of office assets while retaining the structural benefits of net lease arrangements.

The REIT’s business model centers on acquiring office buildings that are leased to creditworthy tenants under triple-net leases, whereby the tenant is responsible for property taxes, insurance and maintenance.