Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Brokerages

Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the six analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $32.50.

Several brokerages have commented on HIW. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Highwoods Properties from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com cut shares of Highwoods Properties from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Highwoods Properties in a research note on Monday, March 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $32.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on Highwoods Properties from $24.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th.

Highwoods Properties Stock Performance

Shares of HIW stock traded up $0.22 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $27.51. The stock had a trading volume of 73,893 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,008,693. The stock's 50 day moving average is $28.43 and its 200 day moving average is $30.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.97 billion, a PE ratio of 29.03 and a beta of 1.15. Highwoods Properties has a twelve month low of $23.77 and a twelve month high of $36.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.85. Highwoods Properties had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 4.33%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Highwoods Properties will post 3.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Highwoods Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.27%. Highwoods Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 210.53%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Highwoods Properties

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Highwoods Properties in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,727,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in Highwoods Properties by 512.9% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,274,443 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $38,961,000 after purchasing an additional 1,066,508 shares during the last quarter. Aew Capital Management L P purchased a new position in Highwoods Properties during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,250,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 40.9% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,130,452 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $107,155,000 after purchasing an additional 908,401 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Highwoods Properties by 20.6% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,265,824 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $99,869,000 after buying an additional 556,828 shares during the period. 96.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.