Simon Property Group Inc Stock Buy Recommendation Reiterated (SPG)

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) has been reiterated by TheStreet Ratings as a buy with a ratings score of A. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its solid stock price performance, impressive record of earnings per share growth, compelling growth in net income, revenue growth and notable return on equity. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had generally poor debt management on most measures that we evaluated.

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Highlights from the ratings report include:

• Powered by its strong earnings growth of 257.37% and other important driving factors, this stock has surged by 30.05% over the past year, outperforming the rise in the S&P 500 Index during the same period. Regarding the stock's future course, although almost any stock can fall in a broad market decline, SPG should continue to move higher despite the fact that it has already enjoyed a very nice gain in the past year.
• SIMON PROPERTY GROUP INC reported significant earnings per share improvement in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. The company has demonstrated a pattern of positive earnings per share growth over the past two years. We feel that this trend should continue. During the past fiscal year, SIMON PROPERTY GROUP INC increased its bottom line by earning $3.48 versus $2.08 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($4.60 versus $3.48).
• The net income growth from the same quarter one year ago has significantly exceeded that of the S&P 500 and the Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry. The net income increased by 258.5% when compared to the same quarter one year prior, rising from $180.25 million to $646.24 million.
• Despite its growing revenue, the company underperformed as compared with the industry average of 18.0%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues rose by 10.7%. Growth in the company's revenue appears to have helped boost the earnings per share.
• Current return on equity exceeded its ROE from the same quarter one year prior. This is a clear sign of strength within the company. In comparison to the other companies in the Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry and the overall market, SIMON PROPERTY GROUP INC's return on equity significantly exceeds that of the industry average and is above that of the S&P 500.

Simon Property Group, Inc. is an independent equity real estate investment trust. It engages in investment, ownership, and management of properties. The firm invests in the real estate markets across the globe. The company has a P/E ratio of 30.2, equal to the average real estate industry P/E ratioand above the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 17.7. Simon Property Group has a market cap of $46.17 billion and is part of the financial sector and real estate industry. Shares are up 16% year to date as of the close of trading on Thursday.

You can view the full Simon Property Group Ratings Report or get investment ideas from our investment research center.

--Written by a member of TheStreet Ratings Staff.

TheStreet ratings do not represent the views of TheStreet's staff or its contributors. Ratings are established by computer based on metrics for performance (which includes growth, stock performance, efficiency and valuation) and risk (volatility and solvency). Companies with poor cash flow or high debt levels tend to earn lower ratings in our model.

 

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