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

Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:PECO) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of 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. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 630,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.3 days. Currently, 3.2% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PECO opened at $37.33 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $36.15 and a 200-day moving average of $37.23. Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $30.62 and a 12 month high of $40.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.67 billion, a PE ratio of 74.66, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.57.

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

Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $0.1025 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $1.23 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.29%. Phillips Edison & Company, Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 246.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PECO. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 35,534 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,331,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. by 2.9% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 10,883 shares of the company’s stock valued at $410,000 after buying an additional 307 shares in the last quarter. FIL Ltd grew its stake in shares of Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. by 17.8% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 2,155 shares of the company’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its holdings in shares of Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 128,465 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,811,000 after buying an additional 344 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its stake in shares of Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 20,185 shares of the company’s stock valued at $756,000 after acquiring an additional 510 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

About Phillips Edison & Company, Inc.

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.