Wells Fargo & Company Cuts Regency Centers (NASDAQ:REG) Price Target to $79.00

Regency Centers (NASDAQ:REG) had its price target lowered by Wells Fargo & Company from $80.00 to $79.00 in a research note published on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on REG. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Regency Centers from $78.00 to $77.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. BTIG Research increased their target price on Regency Centers from $72.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price target on Regency Centers from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Regency Centers presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $78.00.

Regency Centers Stock Performance

NASDAQ:REG opened at $72.87 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $73.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.22 billion, a PE ratio of 34.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 1.23. Regency Centers has a 12-month low of $56.51 and a 12-month high of $78.18.

Regency Centers (NASDAQ:REG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.61. Regency Centers had a return on equity of 5.91% and a net margin of 27.54%. Research analysts anticipate that Regency Centers will post 4.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Regency Centers Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.705 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 12th. This represents a $2.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.87%. Regency Centers’s dividend payout ratio is presently 133.02%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Martin E. Stein, Jr. sold 50,000 shares of Regency Centers stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.48, for a total value of $3,674,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 110,263 shares in the company, valued at $8,102,125.24. This trade represents a 31.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Lisa Palmer sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.26, for a total transaction of $1,831,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 139,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,250,758.98. The trade was a 15.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 95,000 shares of company stock worth $6,977,500 over the last ninety days. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Regency Centers

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Regency Centers during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. National Pension Service acquired a new stake in Regency Centers during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. grew its stake in shares of Regency Centers by 48,700.0% in the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 488 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 487 shares in the last quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan bought a new stake in shares of Regency Centers in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Regency Centers in the fourth quarter worth $54,000. Institutional investors own 96.07% of the company’s stock.

About Regency Centers

Regency Centers is a preeminent national owner, operator, and developer of shopping centers located in suburban trade areas with compelling demographics. Our portfolio includes thriving properties merchandised with highly productive grocers, restaurants, service providers, and best-in-class retailers that connect to their neighborhoods, communities, and customers.