Hsbc Holdings PLC Grows Stock Position in Highwoods Properties, Inc. $HIW

Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) by 34.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 221,609 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 56,931 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Highwoods Properties were worth $5,724,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 12.7% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 177,942 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,275,000 after acquiring an additional 19,998 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in Highwoods Properties by 15.5% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 822,655 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $24,383,000 after purchasing an additional 110,489 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in Highwoods Properties by 10.4% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,243 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $393,000 after purchasing an additional 1,248 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Highwoods Properties by 292.5% in the 1st 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 period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in Highwoods Properties by 9.4% in the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 17,846 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $555,000 after purchasing an additional 1,534 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.31% of the company’s stock.

Highwoods Properties Price Performance

Highwoods Properties stock opened at $29.91 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.61 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 1.50. Highwoods Properties, Inc. has a 1 year low of $20.45 and a 1 year high of $32.76. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $26.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $25.01.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $214.03 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $209.06 million. Highwoods Properties had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 3.97%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.83 earnings per share. Highwoods Properties has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.400-3.68 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Highwoods Properties, Inc. will post 3.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Highwoods Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. Highwoods Properties’s dividend payout ratio is currently 238.10%.

Highwoods Properties declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 22nd that permits the company to buyback $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the real estate investment trust to reacquire up to 9.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on HIW. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Highwoods Properties from $23.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Highwoods Properties from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Highwoods Properties from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 price objective on shares of Highwoods Properties in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Highwoods Properties from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Highwoods Properties currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.11.

About Highwoods Properties

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.