City Office REIT, Inc. (NYSE:CIO) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• City Office REIT experienced a 30.2% increase in short interest in August, with a total of 489,600 shares sold short, reflecting growing bearish sentiment.
• The company reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.28 for the last quarter, matching analyst expectations, but has a negative return on equity of 20.26% and a negative net margin of 71.27%.
• City Office REIT announced a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share, with an annualized yield of 5.8%, despite having a negative dividend payout ratio of -12.62%.

City Office REIT, Inc. (NYSE:CIO - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totaling 489,600 shares, an increase of 30.2% from the July 31st total of 376,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 463,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.1 days. Currently, 1.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Currently, 1.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 463,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.1 days.

City Office REIT Stock Performance

NYSE:CIO traded up $0.02 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $6.95. The stock had a trading volume of 388,887 shares, compared to its average volume of 342,963. The stock has a market capitalization of $280.30 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.82. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $6.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.59. City Office REIT has a 52 week low of $4.19 and a 52 week high of $6.99. The company has a current ratio of 3.31, a quick ratio of 3.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

City Office REIT (NYSE:CIO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.28. The firm had revenue of $42.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $42.54 million. City Office REIT had a negative net margin of 71.27% and a negative return on equity of 20.26%. On average, research analysts expect that City Office REIT will post 1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of City Office REIT

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CIO. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in shares of City Office REIT during the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of City Office REIT by 71.4% during the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 7,230 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 3,013 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of City Office REIT in the first quarter valued at $40,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of City Office REIT by 134.2% in the second quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 8,869 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 5,082 shares during the period. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in shares of City Office REIT by 473.8% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 9,623 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 7,946 shares during the period. 67.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott restated a "neutral" rating on shares of City Office REIT in a research report on Friday, July 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold".

About City Office REIT

City Office REIT is an internally-managed real estate company focused on acquiring, owning and operating high-quality office properties located predominantly in Sun Belt markets. City Office currently owns or has a controlling interest in 5.7 million square feet of office properties. The Company has elected to be taxed as a real estate investment trust for U.S.