Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW) Hits New 52-Week High at $33.75

Shares of Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $33.75 and last traded at $33.40, with a volume of 329676 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $32.71.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Highwoods Properties from $22.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Highwoods Properties from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Highwoods Properties from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $27.29.

Highwoods Properties Trading Up 1.0 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $30.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $27.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.50 billion, a PE ratio of 27.39 and a beta of 1.26.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by ($0.31). The business had revenue of $204.74 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $205.06 million. Highwoods Properties had a return on equity of 6.33% and a net margin of 18.30%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.94 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Highwoods Properties, Inc. will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Highwoods Properties Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 19th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 19th. Highwoods Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 163.93%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Highwoods Properties

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Evergreen Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 13,653 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $359,000 after buying an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Highwoods Properties by 3.6% in the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 10,766 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $283,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 4.9% during the first quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 9,274 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $243,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Highwoods Properties by 11.7% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,206 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $110,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 46,144 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,059,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. 96.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Highwoods Properties

Highwoods Properties, Inc, headquartered in Raleigh, is a publicly-traded (NYSE:HIW), fully-integrated office real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, develops, acquires, leases and manages properties primarily in the best business districts (BBDs) of Atlanta, Charlotte, Dallas, Nashville, Orlando, Raleigh, Richmond and Tampa.