Safehold (NYSE:SAFE) Upgraded to “Hold” at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Safehold (NYSE:SAFE) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

SAFE has been the topic of a number of other research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Safehold from $27.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 15th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Safehold in a report on Friday, July 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered Safehold from a “market outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $18.00 to $16.00 in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Safehold from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $18.71.

Safehold Stock Performance

NYSE SAFE opened at $16.65 on Tuesday. Safehold has a 52-week low of $12.76 and a 52-week high of $17.45. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 35.59 and a current ratio of 35.58. The company has a market capitalization of $1.19 billion, a PE ratio of 10.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.77.

Safehold (NYSE:SAFE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.03). Safehold had a net margin of 28.58% and a return on equity of 4.78%. The company had revenue of $110.85 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $96.51 million. On average, research analysts predict that Safehold will post 1.64 EPS for the current year.

Safehold Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a $0.177 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $0.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.3%. Safehold’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.65%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Safehold

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC bought a new position in Safehold in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Safehold by 115.0% during the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 3,344 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 1,789 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in shares of Safehold during the 3rd quarter valued at about $57,000. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec grew its holdings in shares of Safehold by 25.8% during the fourth quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 4,429 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 908 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in shares of Safehold by 98.1% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,832 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 2,393 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.38% of the company’s stock.

About Safehold

Safehold Inc is a real estate investment trust that seeks to redefine land ownership for commercial property owners. The company acquires perpetual ground leases from landowners and structures long-term leaseback arrangements, enabling building owners to unlock the value of underlying land without relinquishing operational control of their properties. By separating land ownership from building ownership, Safehold offers an alternative to traditional mortgage financing and land sale–leaseback transactions.

Safehold’s portfolio spans multiple commercial real estate sectors, including office, multifamily, industrial and retail, with a focus on high-quality properties in major U.S.