Prudential Financial Inc. Acquires 734,210 Shares of Regency Centers Co. (NASDAQ:REG)

Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Regency Centers Co. (NASDAQ:REG) by 51.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,155,589 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 734,210 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. owned approximately 1.19% of Regency Centers worth $159,363,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Regency Centers by 104.1% in the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 20,038 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,442,000 after buying an additional 10,221 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Regency Centers by 196.1% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 36,245 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,680,000 after acquiring an additional 24,003 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Regency Centers by 47.3% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 29,342 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,121,000 after acquiring an additional 9,424 shares during the last quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Regency Centers by 9.3% during the third quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 105,433 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,615,000 after purchasing an additional 8,959 shares during the period. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Regency Centers in the third quarter worth about $953,000. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on REG shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Regency Centers from $81.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Mizuho raised their price target on Regency Centers from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Regency Centers from $78.00 to $77.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Finally, BTIG Research upped their price objective on shares of Regency Centers from $72.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Three 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 company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $78.08.

Regency Centers Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:REG opened at $71.50 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $72.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $73.00. Regency Centers Co. has a 12-month low of $56.51 and a 12-month high of $78.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.73, a PEG ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 1.23.

Regency Centers (NASDAQ:REG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share (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%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Regency Centers Co. will post 4.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Regency Centers Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be given a dividend of $0.705 per share. This represents a $2.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.94%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 12th. Regency Centers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 133.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Regency Centers news, CEO Lisa Palmer sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.26, for a total value of $1,831,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 139,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,250,758.98. The trade was a 15.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Martin E. Stein, Jr. sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.48, for a total transaction of $3,674,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 110,263 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,102,125.24. The trade was a 31.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 95,000 shares of company stock worth $6,977,500 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.00% 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.