Short Interest in Healthcare Realty Trust Incorporated (NYSE:HR) Grows By 33.7%

Healthcare Realty Trust Incorporated (NYSE:HR - Get Free Report) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 12,590,000 shares, a growth of 33.7% from the March 31st total of 9,420,000 shares. Approximately 3.6% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 2,620,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.8 days.

Healthcare Realty Trust Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of Healthcare Realty Trust stock traded up $0.11 during trading on Thursday, reaching $15.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,441,729 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,216,969. The firm's 50-day moving average is $16.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $16.77. Healthcare Realty Trust has a 52-week low of $14.53 and a 52-week high of $18.90. The company has a market cap of $5.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.60 and a beta of 0.92.

Healthcare Realty Trust (NYSE:HR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.39. Healthcare Realty Trust had a negative return on equity of 11.20% and a negative net margin of 51.60%. The company had revenue of $288.86 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $297.39 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.39 EPS. Healthcare Realty Trust's quarterly revenue was down 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Healthcare Realty Trust will post 1.59 EPS for the current year.

Healthcare Realty Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.10%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. Healthcare Realty Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -113.76%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Healthcare Realty Trust

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Healthcare Realty Trust by 31.0% in the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 469,323 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $7,955,000 after buying an additional 111,125 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Healthcare Realty Trust during the 4th quarter valued at about $440,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Healthcare Realty Trust by 3,419.8% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 28,510 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $483,000 after purchasing an additional 27,700 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Healthcare Realty Trust during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $399,000. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Healthcare Realty Trust by 116.2% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 722,582 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $13,117,000 after purchasing an additional 388,305 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on HR shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Healthcare Realty Trust from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 10th. StockNews.com raised shares of Healthcare Realty Trust from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Healthcare Realty Trust from $18.00 to $17.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Wedbush reduced their target price on Healthcare Realty Trust from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $17.00.

About Healthcare Realty Trust

Healthcare Realty Trust, Inc provides real estate investment services. It owns, leases, manages, acquires, finances, develops, and redevelops income-producing real estate properties associated primarily with the delivery of outpatient healthcare services throughout the United States of America. The company was founded by David R.