Gotham Asset Management LLC Buys 159,939 Shares of Cousins Properties Incorporated $CUZ

Key Points

• Gotham Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Cousins Properties Incorporated by 62%, acquiring an additional 159,939 shares, bringing its total holdings to 417,722 shares worth $12.3 million.
• Cousins Properties reported Q2 earnings of $0.70 per share, matching analysts' estimates, while revenue increased by 12.7% year-over-year to $237.72 million.
• Despite positive revenue growth, the company's dividend payout ratio stands at an unusually high 345.95%, indicating a potential sustainability issue with the dividend payments.

Gotham Asset Management LLC raised its position in Cousins Properties Incorporated (NYSE:CUZ - Free Report) by 62.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 417,722 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 159,939 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC owned 0.25% of Cousins Properties worth $12,323,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. increased its stake in Cousins Properties by 14.8% in the 1st quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. now owns 3,175 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $94,000 after buying an additional 410 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in Cousins Properties by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 16,377 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $483,000 after buying an additional 427 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in Cousins Properties by 16.5% in the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 3,374 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $100,000 after buying an additional 477 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG increased its stake in shares of Cousins Properties by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 110,867 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $3,397,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Cousins Properties by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 40,144 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,184,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.38% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Cousins Properties

In other news, CAO Jeffrey D. Symes sold 4,612 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.30, for a total transaction of $135,131.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 13,518 shares in the company, valued at $396,077.40. The trade was a 25.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Cousins Properties Stock Performance

Cousins Properties stock traded down $0.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $29.42. The company's stock had a trading volume of 223,122 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,503,668. Cousins Properties Incorporated has a 12-month low of $24.07 and a 12-month high of $32.55. The company has a market capitalization of $4.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 79.41, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 2.45 and a current ratio of 2.45. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $28.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $28.45.

Cousins Properties (NYSE:CUZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70. The firm had revenue of $237.72 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $243.73 million. Cousins Properties had a net margin of 6.51% and a return on equity of 1.27%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.68 EPS. Cousins Properties has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.790-2.850 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Cousins Properties Incorporated will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cousins Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 7th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 7th. Cousins Properties's payout ratio is 345.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Cousins Properties from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 6th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Cousins Properties from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Cousins Properties from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Cousins Properties from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Cousins Properties from $34.00 to $32.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $32.40.

Cousins Properties Company Profile

Cousins Properties Incorporated ("Cousins") is a fully integrated, self-administered, and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT). The Company, based in Atlanta and acting through its operating partnership, Cousins Properties LP, primarily invests in Class A office buildings located in high-growth Sun Belt markets.