Sonora Investment Management Group LLC Buys Shares of 40,000 Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:PDM)

Sonora Investment Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:PDM - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 40,000 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $295,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Piedmont Office Realty Trust by 88.7% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 237,407 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,398,000 after buying an additional 111,596 shares during the last quarter. abrdn plc grew its holdings in Piedmont Office Realty Trust by 30.6% during the fourth quarter. abrdn plc now owns 31,794 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $280,000 after acquiring an additional 7,453 shares during the period. Choreo LLC grew its holdings in Piedmont Office Realty Trust by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 54,024 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $484,000 after acquiring an additional 2,078 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in Piedmont Office Realty Trust by 23.1% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 30,299 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $277,000 after purchasing an additional 5,687 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Piedmont Office Realty Trust by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 195,038 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,718,000 after purchasing an additional 6,149 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.48% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on PDM. Wall Street Zen raised Piedmont Office Realty Trust from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, February 17th. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Piedmont Office Realty Trust from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Piedmont Office Realty Trust from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Piedmont Office Realty Trust from $9.00 to $8.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $8.67.

Insider Transactions at Piedmont Office Realty Trust

In other news, CFO Sherry L. Rexroad purchased 16,850 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $5.95 per share, for a total transaction of $100,257.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,850 shares in the company, valued at approximately $100,257.50. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.29% of the company's stock.

Piedmont Office Realty Trust Price Performance

NYSE PDM traded down $0.28 during trading on Friday, reaching $7.51. 905,877 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 913,392. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $6.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $7.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 2.22 and a current ratio of 2.10. The company has a market cap of $934.30 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.92 and a beta of 1.44. Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. has a 1-year low of $5.46 and a 1-year high of $11.12.

Piedmont Office Realty Trust (NYSE:PDM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.01. Piedmont Office Realty Trust had a negative net margin of 13.86% and a negative return on equity of 4.82%. The firm had revenue of $136.06 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $141.29 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.39 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.41 EPS for the current year.

About Piedmont Office Realty Trust

Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc (also referred to herein as "Piedmont" or the "Company") NYSE: PDM is an owner, manager, developer, redeveloper and operator of high-quality, Class A office properties located primarily in major U.S. Sunbelt markets. The Company is a fully-integrated, self-managed real estate investment trust ("REIT") with local management offices in each of its markets and is investment-grade rated by Standard & Poor's and Moody's.