UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Sells 739,282 Shares of Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lowered its stake in shares of Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW - Free Report) by 83.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 146,259 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 739,282 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned 0.14% of Highwoods Properties worth $4,473,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Highwoods Properties in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,727,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 512.9% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,274,443 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $38,961,000 after acquiring an additional 1,066,508 shares during the last quarter. Aew Capital Management L P bought a new stake in shares of Highwoods Properties in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,250,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Highwoods Properties by 20.6% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,265,824 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $99,869,000 after purchasing an additional 556,828 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 55.9% during the 4th quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,267,553 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $38,762,000 after purchasing an additional 454,670 shares during the last quarter. 96.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Highwoods Properties Trading Up 2.3%

Shares of Highwoods Properties stock traded up $0.70 during trading on Friday, reaching $31.14. 868,833 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 927,227. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The stock's fifty day moving average is $28.66 and its 200 day moving average is $29.43. The firm has a market cap of $3.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.78 and a beta of 1.21. Highwoods Properties, Inc. has a 1 year low of $24.19 and a 1 year high of $36.78.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $200.38 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $201.31 million. Highwoods Properties had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 4.33%. Highwoods Properties's revenue for the quarter was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.89 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Highwoods Properties, Inc. will post 3.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Highwoods Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.42%. Highwoods Properties's dividend payout ratio is currently 124.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Highwoods Properties in a research report on Monday, March 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $32.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Highwoods Properties from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Highwoods Properties from $35.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Highwoods Properties from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $31.83.

Highwoods Properties Profile

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.