Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Grows Stake in Cousins Properties Incorporated (NYSE:CUZ)

Key Points

• Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board increased its stake in Cousins Properties by 57.9%, acquiring an additional 28,081 shares, now totaling 76,570 shares valued at approximately $2.26 million.
• In the first quarter, various institutional investors also increased their holdings, with Manchester Capital Management increasing its stake by 579.7% and Phocas Financial Corp purchasing a new stake worth about $3.36 million.
• Cousins Properties recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.32 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 4.7% and a significant dividend payout ratio of 345.95%.

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board raised its holdings in shares of Cousins Properties Incorporated (NYSE:CUZ - Free Report) by 57.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 76,570 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 28,081 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board's holdings in Cousins Properties were worth $2,259,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Cousins Properties by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,753,741 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $759,735,000 after acquiring an additional 951,637 shares in the last quarter. Resolution Capital Ltd bought a new position in Cousins Properties during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $135,094,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Cousins Properties by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,072,221 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $94,160,000 after purchasing an additional 208,044 shares during the last quarter. Rush Island Management LP boosted its stake in Cousins Properties by 91.4% during the 4th quarter. Rush Island Management LP now owns 3,011,843 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $92,283,000 after purchasing an additional 1,438,127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. boosted its stake in Cousins Properties by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 2,505,910 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $76,781,000 after purchasing an additional 172,094 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.38% of the company's stock.

Cousins Properties Stock Performance

NYSE CUZ traded down $0.30 on Friday, hitting $26.74. 2,258,500 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,670,479. The company has a market capitalization of $4.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 72.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a current ratio of 2.45, a quick ratio of 2.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The business's 50 day moving average price is $28.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.74. Cousins Properties Incorporated has a 52-week low of $24.07 and a 52-week high of $32.55.

Cousins Properties (NYSE:CUZ - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.70. The company had revenue of $237.72 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $243.73 million. Cousins Properties had a return on equity of 1.27% and a net margin of 6.51%. Cousins Properties's quarterly revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.68 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Cousins Properties Incorporated will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Cousins Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 7th were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 7th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.8%. Cousins Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 345.95%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Cousins Properties from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Truist Financial downgraded Cousins Properties from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $31.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Mizuho raised their price target on Cousins Properties from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Cousins Properties from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Cousins Properties from $34.00 to $32.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $32.50.

Cousins Properties 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.