Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) Shares Sold by Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp trimmed its holdings in Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW - Free Report) by 84.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,114 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 11,604 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp's holdings in Highwoods Properties were worth $65,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of HIW. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in Highwoods Properties by 375.0% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 855 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 675 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in Highwoods Properties in the third quarter worth approximately $48,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Highwoods Properties by 124.7% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,434 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 1,351 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Highwoods Properties by 363.7% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,972 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $91,000 after purchasing an additional 2,331 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 12.0% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 3,052 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $93,000 after buying an additional 327 shares during the period. 96.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Highwoods Properties Stock Down 3.6 %

Shares of HIW stock traded down $0.97 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $26.17. 1,598,633 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 913,490. Highwoods Properties, Inc. has a 52-week low of $23.52 and a 52-week high of $36.78. The stock has a market cap of $2.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.54 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The stock's fifty day moving average is $28.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.92.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.85. Highwoods Properties had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 4.33%. Equities analysts predict that Highwoods Properties, Inc. will post 3.36 EPS for the current year.

Highwoods Properties Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.64%. Highwoods Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 210.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on HIW shares. Mizuho raised their price target on Highwoods Properties from $24.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Truist Financial cut 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. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Highwoods Properties in a research report on Monday, March 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $32.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Highwoods Properties from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $32.50.

Highwoods Properties Company Profile

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.