Whitestone REIT (NYSE:WSR) Short Interest Up 29.1% in March

Whitestone REIT (NYSE:WSR - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 389,600 shares, a growth of 29.1% from the February 28th total of 301,700 shares. Currently, 0.8% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 229,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.7 days.

Whitestone REIT Stock Down 4.6 %

NYSE:WSR traded down $0.65 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $13.54. 174,422 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 223,539. Whitestone REIT has a one year low of $10.77 and a one year high of $15.36. The company has a quick ratio of 2.17, a current ratio of 2.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The company has a market cap of $689.07 million, a PE ratio of 32.95, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.29. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $13.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $13.98.

Whitestone REIT Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.045 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.99%. Whitestone REIT's dividend payout ratio is currently 76.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on WSR shares. JMP Securities reissued a "market outperform" rating and issued a $16.00 price target on shares of Whitestone REIT in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Whitestone REIT in a report on Friday, March 28th. They set a "hold" rating for the company. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Whitestone REIT from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th.

Whitestone REIT Company Profile

Whitestone REIT NYSE: WSR is a community-centered real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, owns, operates, and develops open-air, retail centers located in some of the fastest growing markets in the country: Phoenix, Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio. Our centers are convenience focused: merchandised with a mix of service-oriented tenants providing food (restaurants and grocers), self-care (health and fitness), services (financial and logistics), education and entertainment to the surrounding communities.