Simon Property Group will reopen its five remaining closed locations this week
The shares of Simon Property Group Inc (NYSE:SPG) were last seen down 0.1% trading at $68, after the mall operator said it would reopen the final five retail properties still closed within the next week. SPG reported better-than-expected sales among many of its tenants that have already reopened their doors. This news comes not even a month after the company sued Gap (GPS) for nearly $66 million over missed rent payments and overdue charges.
As a result, Stifel lifted its price target to $75 from $70, but this bullish sentiment isn't shared by most brokerages. Currently, 10 of the 13 in coverage sport a tepid "hold," although the remaining three say it's a "strong buy." Meanwhile, the stock's consensus 12-month target price of $84.85 is a 23.6% premium to current levels.
On the charts, Simon Property stock peaked at $95.56 on June 8 but was rejected by its 120-day moving average. In recent weeks, the security has been dancing around its 80-day moving average, though it still boasts a 24.7% quarter-to-date gain. Today, SPG is set for its second-straight close north of the trendline.
The options pits are exploding with optimism at the moment. This is per SPG's 50-day call/put volume ratio of 1.46 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX). This ratio sits higher than all other readings from the past year, meaning long calls haven't been more popular.
Echoing this, the stock's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 1.06 sits in the low 6th percentile of all other readings from the 12 months. This suggests short-term option players have rarely been more call-biased.