Cousins Properties (NYSE:CUZ) Cut to “Sell” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Cousins Properties (NYSE:CUZ) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report issued on Thursday morning.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Truist Financial increased their price target on Cousins Properties from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Cousins Properties from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Cousins Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $33.00 to $36.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Cousins Properties from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $34.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Cousins Properties from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $31.00 to $32.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cousins Properties presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $33.11.

Cousins Properties Stock Performance

Shares of CUZ stock opened at $28.54 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $30.76 and a 200-day moving average of $28.73. The company has a market cap of $4.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 86.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Cousins Properties has a 52 week low of $21.58 and a 52 week high of $32.55.

Cousins Properties (NYSE:CUZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by ($0.60). Cousins Properties had a return on equity of 1.14% and a net margin of 6.17%. The company had revenue of $209.21 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $212.54 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.65 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Cousins Properties will post 2.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Cousins Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.48%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. Cousins Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 387.88%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cousins Properties

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cousins Properties by 49.7% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,319 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 438 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in Cousins Properties by 30.8% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,765 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 651 shares during the period. Quarry LP boosted its position in Cousins Properties by 74.5% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,976 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $117,000 after purchasing an additional 1,697 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Cousins Properties by 168.0% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,057 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $120,000 after purchasing an additional 2,543 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Cousins Properties by 74.6% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,298 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $127,000 after purchasing an additional 1,836 shares during the last quarter. 94.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.