Raymond James Financial Inc. Purchases Shares of 214,666 Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 214,666 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $6,565,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.20% of Highwoods Properties at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Highwoods Properties in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,727,000. Aew Capital Management L P bought a new position in Highwoods Properties in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,250,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Highwoods Properties by 40.9% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,130,452 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $107,155,000 after acquiring an additional 908,401 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Highwoods Properties by 20.6% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,265,824 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $99,869,000 after acquiring an additional 556,828 shares during the period. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its stake in Highwoods Properties by 55.9% during the fourth 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.31% of the company's stock.

Highwoods Properties Trading Down 2.7 %

Shares of Highwoods Properties stock traded down $0.78 on Tuesday, hitting $27.63. The stock had a trading volume of 161,773 shares, compared to its average volume of 906,023. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $28.25 and a 200 day moving average of $30.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25. Highwoods Properties, Inc. has a twelve month low of $24.07 and a twelve month high of $36.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.06 and a beta of 1.15.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.85. Highwoods Properties had a return on equity of 4.33% and a net margin of 12.37%. Sell-side analysts expect that Highwoods Properties, Inc. will post 3.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Highwoods Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be given 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 7.24%. Highwoods Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 210.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on HIW shares. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Highwoods Properties from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Highwoods Properties from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Highwoods Properties in a research report on Monday, March 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $32.00 price target for the company. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on Highwoods Properties from $24.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $32.50.

Highwoods Properties Company 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.