StockNews.com Downgrades Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW) to Sell

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Highwoods Properties in a research report on Monday, March 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $32.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on Highwoods Properties from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on Highwoods Properties from $24.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Highwoods Properties has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $32.50.

Highwoods Properties Price Performance

Shares of Highwoods Properties stock traded down $1.95 during trading on Thursday, hitting $27.91. 788,554 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 907,701. The stock has a market cap of $3.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.37 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Highwoods Properties has a 52 week low of $23.52 and a 52 week high of $36.78. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $29.04 and its 200-day moving average is $31.04.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85. Highwoods Properties had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 4.33%. Research analysts expect that Highwoods Properties will post 3.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Highwoods Properties

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of HIW. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in Highwoods Properties by 375.0% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 855 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Highwoods Properties during the third quarter valued at approximately $48,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new stake in Highwoods Properties in the fourth quarter worth $59,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Highwoods Properties by 124.7% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,434 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 1,351 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Highwoods Properties by 363.7% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,972 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $91,000 after acquiring an additional 2,331 shares in the last quarter. 96.31% of the stock is owned by 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.