Cousins Properties (NYSE:CUZ) Sets New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Cousins Properties Incorporated (NYSE:CUZ) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $30.75 and last traded at $30.64, with a volume of 52857 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $30.25.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CUZ. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Cousins Properties from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Cousins Properties from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Cousins Properties from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Cousins Properties from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Cousins Properties from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $29.00.

Cousins Properties Stock Performance

The stock’s fifty day moving average is $28.64 and its 200-day moving average is $25.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The stock has a market cap of $4.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 64.08, a PEG ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 1.30.

Cousins Properties (NYSE:CUZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by ($0.61). Cousins Properties had a net margin of 7.25% and a return on equity of 1.31%. The firm had revenue of $212.98 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $208.18 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.75 EPS. Cousins Properties’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Cousins Properties Incorporated will post 2.67 EPS for the current year.

Cousins Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 3rd were given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 3rd. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.08%. Cousins Properties’s dividend payout ratio is presently 261.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Jeffrey D. Symes sold 5,997 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.13, for a total value of $168,695.61. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 12,529 shares in the company, valued at $352,440.77. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cousins Properties

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Cousins Properties by 130.8% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,514 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 858 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Cousins Properties by 3,236.7% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,635 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,586 shares in the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Cousins Properties in the 1st quarter valued at $43,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Cousins Properties during the 2nd quarter worth about $115,000. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its position in Cousins Properties by 74.6% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,298 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $127,000 after buying an additional 1,836 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.38% of the company’s stock.

Cousins Properties Company Profile

Cousins Properties Incorporated ("Cousins") is a fully integrated, self-administered, and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT). The Company, based in Atlanta and acting through its operating partnership, Cousins Properties LP, primarily invests in Class A office buildings located in high-growth Sun Belt markets.