Kimco Realty Corporation (KIM) officially joins the Standard & Poor’s 500 index today. Shares in the company increased 6.8% on March 29, the day after Kimco’s S&P 500 inclusion was announced. Shares rose 27% year-to-date through the end of Friday.
Last night, however, Bank of America REIT analyst Ross Nussbaum downgraded KIM to “neutral” citing the stock’s “fully-valued” status. KIM is now trading at a 3% premium to the strip center peer group on forward adjusted funds from operation, according to Nussbaum.
“While we continue to expect solid results from Kimco [10% FFO per share growth in 2006], we don’t foresee any meaningful near-term catalysts to drive the stock higher at current levels,” wrote Nussbaum in his research note.
Kimco, a publicly traded REIT, specializes in shopping center acquisitions, development and management. It also owns and operates the nation’s largest portfolio of neighborhood and community shopping centers.