Aberdeen Group plc Sells 15,530 Shares of Highwoods Properties, Inc. $HIW

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group plc reduced its stake in Highwoods Properties, Inc. by 34.2%, selling 15,530 shares and retaining 29,923 shares valued at approximately $887,000.
• Highwoods properties announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 6.9%.
• Analyst ratings for Highwoods Properties include a downgrade from "hold" to "sell" by Wall Street Zen and various analysts adjusting price targets, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a target price of $32.00.

Aberdeen Group plc cut its stake in Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW - Free Report) by 34.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 29,923 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 15,530 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc's holdings in Highwoods Properties were worth $887,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of HIW. POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Highwoods Properties in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Avalon Trust Co bought a new stake in Highwoods Properties in the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in Highwoods Properties in the 4th quarter valued at $59,000. Spirit of America Management Corp NY bought a new stake in Highwoods Properties in the 1st quarter valued at $59,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new position in shares of Highwoods Properties during the 1st quarter worth about $82,000. 96.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HIW has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Highwoods Properties from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 16th. Truist Financial downgraded shares of Highwoods Properties from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $32.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Highwoods Properties from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Highwoods Properties from $35.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $32.00.

Highwoods Properties Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of Highwoods Properties stock opened at $29.1750 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.52 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.41. Highwoods Properties, Inc. has a 12-month low of $24.18 and a 12-month high of $36.78.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $200.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $203.22 million. Highwoods Properties had a net margin of 16.15% and a return on equity of 5.57%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.98 EPS. Highwoods Properties has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.370-3.450 EPS. Research analysts expect that Highwoods Properties, Inc. will post 3.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Highwoods Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.9%. Highwoods Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 168.07%.

About Highwoods Properties

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.

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