Kilroy Realty Co. (NYSE:KRC) Short Interest Up 5.6% in March

Kilroy Realty Co. (NYSE:KRC - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 7,710,000 shares, an increase of 5.6% from the March 15th total of 7,300,000 shares. Currently, 6.7% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,160,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.6 days.

Kilroy Realty Stock Down 1.7 %

KRC traded down $0.58 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $32.38. 892,274 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,130,094. Kilroy Realty has a 1-year low of $25.99 and a 1-year high of $43.37. The stock's 50-day moving average is $35.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $34.94. The stock has a market cap of $3.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.90, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 2.65, a current ratio of 2.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Kilroy Realty Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 29th were given a dividend of $0.54 per share. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.67%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Kilroy Realty's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 120.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on KRC shares. KeyCorp dropped their price target on shares of Kilroy Realty from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded shares of Kilroy Realty from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $44.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Friday, March 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Kilroy Realty in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $40.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Kilroy Realty in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $38.00 target price for the company. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kilroy Realty has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $39.00.

Institutional Trading of Kilroy Realty

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Kilroy Realty by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,997,240 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $677,170,000 after acquiring an additional 91,022 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. raised its position in Kilroy Realty by 4.3% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 14,219,574 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $460,714,000 after acquiring an additional 583,920 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Kilroy Realty during the fourth quarter worth $360,831,000. State Street Corp raised its position in Kilroy Realty by 0.5% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,265,901 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $206,333,000 after acquiring an additional 32,293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Kilroy Realty by 0.4% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,501,383 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $173,898,000 after acquiring an additional 23,585 shares in the last quarter. 94.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Kilroy Realty

Kilroy Realty Corporation (NYSE: KRC, the company, Kilroy) is a leading U.S. landlord and developer, with operations in San Diego, Greater Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, Greater Seattle and Austin. The company has earned global recognition for sustainability, building operations, innovation and design.

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