Verition Fund Management LLC Acquires 7,942 Shares of Regency Centers Co. (NASDAQ:REG)

Verition Fund Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Regency Centers Co. (NASDAQ:REG - Free Report) by 138.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,694 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 7,942 shares during the quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC's holdings in Regency Centers were worth $989,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Regency Centers by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 8,922,988 shares of the company's stock worth $555,009,000 after acquiring an additional 357,091 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Regency Centers by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,641,921 shares of the company's stock valued at $164,327,000 after purchasing an additional 117,368 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Regency Centers by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,312,535 shares of the company's stock worth $167,034,000 after buying an additional 71,278 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in Regency Centers by 1,138.5% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,075,753 shares of the company's stock valued at $149,932,000 after buying an additional 1,908,153 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PGGM Investments grew its position in Regency Centers by 2,586.9% in the second quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 1,670,607 shares of the company's stock valued at $103,912,000 after acquiring an additional 1,608,431 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on REG shares. Evercore ISI raised shares of Regency Centers from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Regency Centers from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Regency Centers from $67.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Regency Centers from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $70.00 to $75.00 in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on Regency Centers from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $77.08.

Regency Centers Stock Up 1.1 %

Regency Centers stock traded up $0.79 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $74.92. 1,086,751 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,098,024. Regency Centers Co. has a 52-week low of $56.51 and a 52-week high of $76.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The business's 50-day moving average price is $72.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $68.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 1.22.

Regency Centers (NASDAQ:REG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.50). Regency Centers had a return on equity of 5.85% and a net margin of 27.78%. The company had revenue of $360.27 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $355.17 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.02 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Regency Centers Co. will post 4.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Regency Centers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.705 per share. This is a boost from Regency Centers's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. Regency Centers's dividend payout ratio is presently 125.82%.

Regency Centers Profile

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.