Highwoods Properties, Inc. Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.50 (NYSE:HIW)

Key Points

• Highwoods Properties, Inc. has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $2.00 and a yield of 6.62%, with the payment scheduled for September 9th to shareholders of record on August 18th.
• The company has a high dividend payout ratio of 289.9%, indicating it is currently relying on its balance sheet to fund dividends, although future earnings projections suggest a more manageable payout ratio of 55.7% next year.
• Highwoods Properties' stock currently has an average "Hold" rating from analysts, with a consensus price target of $32.00, as various firms have adjusted their ratings and target prices recently.

Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Friday, July 25th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a dividend of 0.50 per share by the real estate investment trust on Tuesday, September 9th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.61%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th.

Highwoods Properties has a payout ratio of 289.9% meaning the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Research analysts expect Highwoods Properties to earn $3.59 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.00 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 55.7%.

Highwoods Properties Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HIW traded up $0.52 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $30.25. 1,801,546 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 668,770. Highwoods Properties has a fifty-two week low of $24.18 and a fifty-two week high of $36.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 1.50. The firm has a market cap of $3.26 billion, a PE ratio of 18.79 and a beta of 1.21. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $30.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $29.48.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.04. Highwoods Properties had a net margin of 21.53% and a return on equity of 7.43%. The firm's revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.98 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Highwoods Properties will post 3.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on HIW shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Highwoods Properties from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Highwoods Properties from $35.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 19th. Truist Financial cut shares of Highwoods Properties from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $32.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Highwoods Properties from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Highwoods Properties currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $32.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Highwoods Properties

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Highwoods Properties by 292.5% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,680 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 1,252 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Highwoods Properties by 10.4% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,243 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $393,000 after buying an additional 1,248 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of Highwoods Properties by 12.7% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 177,942 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $5,275,000 after buying an additional 19,998 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Highwoods Properties by 15.5% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 822,655 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $24,383,000 after buying an additional 110,489 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.31% of the company's stock.

About Highwoods Properties

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.