Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) Given Average Recommendation of "Hold" by Analysts

Key Points

• Highwoods Properties has a consensus analyst rating of “Hold”, with six analysts rating it hold and two rating it buy. The average 12-month price target is about $27.78.
• The company reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, posting EPS of $0.29 versus the $0.16 estimate, while revenue rose 6.8% year over year to $214.03 million.
• Highwoods approved a $250 million stock repurchase plan and also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, equal to a 7.9% annualized yield.

Shares of Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $27.7778.

Several research firms have weighed in on HIW. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Highwoods Properties from $30.00 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $28.00 price objective on shares of Highwoods Properties in a research report on Thursday. Robert W. Baird set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Highwoods Properties in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Highwoods Properties from $30.00 to $25.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Highwoods Properties in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Highwoods Properties

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,903,497 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $436,448,000 after acquiring an additional 407,406 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,699,130 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $172,972,000 after acquiring an additional 81,348 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,302,750 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $200,554,000 after acquiring an additional 205,761 shares in the last quarter. Aew Capital Management L P grew its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Aew Capital Management L P now owns 2,433,243 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $62,826,000 after acquiring an additional 88,672 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 2,205,348 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $70,174,000 after acquiring an additional 14,410 shares in the last quarter. 96.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Highwoods Properties Trading Down 2.8%

NYSE HIW opened at $25.48 on Friday. Highwoods Properties has a twelve month low of $20.45 and a twelve month high of $32.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 1.50. The stock has a market cap of $2.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.33 and a beta of 1.08. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $22.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.08.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.13. Highwoods Properties had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 3.97%. The firm had revenue of $214.03 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $209.06 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.83 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Highwoods Properties has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.400-3.68 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Highwoods Properties will post 3.53 EPS for the current year.

Highwoods Properties declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 22nd that authorizes the company to buyback $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the real estate investment trust to purchase up to 9.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Highwoods Properties Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. Highwoods Properties's payout ratio is currently 238.10%.

About Highwoods Properties

Highwoods Properties, Inc is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, leases and manages office properties. The company's portfolio is primarily focused on Class A office space, with an emphasis on high-quality buildings in key urban and suburban submarkets. Highwoods seeks to generate long-term, recurring revenues through a mix of in-place lease renewals, strategic dispositions and build-to-suit developments. Its asset management platform drives operational efficiencies and tenant service initiatives across its holdings.

Founded in 1970 and headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, Highwoods Properties has expanded its presence to eight major metropolitan regions across the Southeastern United States and Texas.

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