Stifel Financial Corp Reduces Position in Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW)

Stifel Financial Corp cut its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) by 3.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 78,642 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 3,066 shares during the quarter. Stifel Financial Corp owned about 0.07% of Highwoods Properties worth $2,635,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Highwoods Properties in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $48,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Highwoods Properties by 269.8% during the third 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 boosted its stake in Highwoods Properties by 55.8% during the third 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. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Highwoods Properties by 35.1% in the 3rd 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 buying an additional 1,069 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Highwoods Properties by 19.5% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,026 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $168,000 after buying an additional 820 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.31% of the company’s stock.

Highwoods Properties Stock Down 5.2 %

Shares of HIW opened at $29.64 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $32.90 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.80. Highwoods Properties, Inc. has a 12-month low of $21.37 and a 12-month high of $36.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The firm has a market cap of $3.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.12 and a beta of 1.24.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $204.96 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.93 earnings per share. Highwoods Properties’s revenue was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Highwoods Properties, Inc. will post 3.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Highwoods Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.75%. Highwoods Properties’s dividend payout ratio is currently 149.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Highwoods Properties from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Highwoods Properties from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Highwoods Properties from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price target for the company from $31.00 to $35.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.20.

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.