Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) Stock Position Raised by Versant Capital Management Inc

Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) by 12.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 3,052 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc’s holdings in Highwoods Properties were worth $93,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of HIW. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Highwoods Properties during the 3rd quarter worth about $48,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 269.8% in 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 during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Highwoods Properties by 55.8% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,260 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $109,000 after acquiring an additional 1,167 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 35.1% during 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 period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 820 shares in the last quarter. 96.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Highwoods Properties Price Performance

HIW opened at $30.78 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Highwoods Properties, Inc. has a 1 year low of $21.37 and a 1 year high of $36.78. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $31.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.21. The stock has a market cap of $3.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.97 and a beta of 1.24.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $204.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $204.96 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.93 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Highwoods Properties, Inc. will post 3.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Highwoods Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.50%. Highwoods Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 149.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on HIW shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Highwoods Properties from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $31.00 to $35.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Highwoods Properties from $35.00 to $31.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective 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, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Highwoods Properties from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Highwoods Properties currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $31.17.

Highwoods Properties 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.