Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:PECO) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:PECO) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,950,000 shares, a growth of 24.6% from the February 28th total of 3,170,000 shares. Approximately 3.2% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 630,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.3 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PECO. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. by 79.4% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,360 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 602 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $54,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. by 94.6% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,621 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 788 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in shares of Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $68,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. from $41.00 to $40.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Mizuho reduced their price target on Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. from $41.00 to $38.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. from $37.00 to $36.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $38.83.

Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. Price Performance

Shares of PECO stock traded up $0.47 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $37.33. 763,057 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 673,070. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $36.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $37.23. The firm has a market cap of $4.67 billion, a PE ratio of 74.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.57. Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $30.62 and a 1-year high of $40.12.

Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:PECO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.50. Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. had a return on equity of 2.40% and a net margin of 9.48%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a $0.1025 dividend. This represents a $1.23 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. Phillips Edison & Company, Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 246.00%.

Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. Company Profile

Phillips Edison & Co, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the ownership and operation of shopping centers. It also offers an investment management business providing property management and advisory services. Its portfolio consists of well-occupied, grocery-anchored neighborhood and community shopping centers having a mix of national, regional, and local retailers offering necessity-based goods and services.