Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) Receives $31.20 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seven ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $30.86.

Several research firms have weighed in on HIW. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Highwoods Properties from $24.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Highwoods Properties from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Highwoods Properties from $35.00 to $31.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Highwoods Properties from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Highwoods Properties from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $31.00 to $35.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Highwoods Properties

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HIW. Quarry LP bought a new position in Highwoods Properties in the third quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake 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 valued at $93,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 269.8% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,221 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $108,000 after buying an additional 2,350 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Highwoods Properties by 55.8% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,260 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $109,000 after buying an additional 1,167 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in Highwoods Properties by 35.1% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 4,114 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $135,000 after acquiring an additional 1,069 shares during the last quarter. 96.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Highwoods Properties Stock Performance

HIW opened at $29.23 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Highwoods Properties has a 12-month low of $21.37 and a 12-month high of $36.78. The business has a 50 day moving average of $31.46 and a 200-day moving average of $31.28. The stock has a market cap of $3.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.81 and a beta of 1.24.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by ($0.74). The company had revenue of $204.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $204.96 million. Highwoods Properties had a return on equity of 6.05% and a net margin of 17.40%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.93 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Highwoods Properties will post 3.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Highwoods Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.84%. Highwoods Properties’s payout ratio is 149.25%.

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.