Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $31.66, but opened at $31.00. Highwoods Properties shares last traded at $31.22, with a volume of 53,148 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on HIW. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Highwoods Properties from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Highwoods Properties from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Highwoods Properties from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Highwoods Properties from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $31.00 to $35.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.20.

Highwoods Properties Trading Up 0.2 %

The stock has a market cap of $3.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.48 and a beta of 1.26. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $33.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 1.31.

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 the consensus estimate of $0.88 by ($0.74). Highwoods Properties had a net margin of 17.40% and a return on equity of 6.05%. The company had revenue of $204.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $204.96 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.93 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Highwoods Properties, Inc. will post 3.62 EPS for the current year.

Highwoods Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.36%. Highwoods Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 149.25%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Quent Capital LLC raised its stake in Highwoods Properties by 12.3% during the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 5,304 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $139,000 after purchasing an additional 583 shares in the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 94,187 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,466,000 after buying an additional 2,275 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 233,864 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $6,125,000 after buying an additional 13,082 shares during the last quarter. BOKF NA raised its position in shares of Highwoods Properties by 86.5% during the 1st quarter. BOKF NA now owns 61,432 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,540,000 after buying an additional 28,493 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 6.0% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 57,081 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,495,000 after acquiring an additional 3,229 shares during the last quarter. 96.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.