Vanguard Group Inc. Purchases 295,289 Shares of Highwoods Properties, Inc. $HIW

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) by 1.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,496,091 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 295,289 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 15.01% of Highwoods Properties worth $524,906,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Highwoods Properties in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Highwoods Properties by 292.5% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,680 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,252 shares during the last quarter. MAI Capital Management lifted its stake in shares of Highwoods Properties by 67.3% in the second quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 1,803 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 725 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Highwoods Properties by 97.4% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,242 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 1,106 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 562.9% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,552 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $79,000 after buying an additional 2,167 shares in the last quarter. 96.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on HIW. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Highwoods Properties from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Highwoods Properties in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 target price on shares of Highwoods Properties in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Highwoods Properties from $31.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Highwoods Properties from $30.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $29.22.

Highwoods Properties Price Performance

Shares of Highwoods Properties stock opened at $23.03 on Wednesday. Highwoods Properties, Inc. has a twelve month low of $21.56 and a twelve month high of $32.76. The firm has a market cap of $2.53 billion, a PE ratio of 15.77 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $25.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $28.16.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.84 by ($0.58). The company had revenue of $203.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $208.08 million. Highwoods Properties had a return on equity of 6.86% and a net margin of 20.10%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.85 earnings per share. Highwoods Properties has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.400-3.680 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Highwoods Properties, Inc. will post 3.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Highwoods Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.7%. Highwoods Properties’s payout ratio is 136.99%.

Highwoods Properties Profile

Highwoods Properties, Inc is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, leases and manages office properties. The company’s portfolio is primarily focused on Class A office space, with an emphasis on high-quality buildings in key urban and suburban submarkets. Highwoods seeks to generate long-term, recurring revenues through a mix of in-place lease renewals, strategic dispositions and build-to-suit developments. Its asset management platform drives operational efficiencies and tenant service initiatives across its holdings.

Founded in 1970 and headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, Highwoods Properties has expanded its presence to eight major metropolitan regions across the Southeastern United States and Texas.