City Office REIT, Inc. (NYSE:CIO) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Key Points

• City Office REIT, Inc. experienced a significant drop in short interest, falling by 52.8% in August, with total short interest of 231,000 shares as of August 31st.
• The company reported earnings of $0.28 per share for the previous quarter, matching analysts' expectations, but had a negative net margin of 71.27%.
• Recent activity showed that significant institutional investment has occurred, with large investors like PNC Financial Services increasing their stake by 134.2% during the second quarter.

City Office REIT, Inc. (NYSE:CIO - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 231,000 shares, a decline of 52.8% from the August 15th total of 489,600 shares. Currently, 0.6% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 495,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.5 days. Based on an average daily volume of 495,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.5 days. Currently, 0.6% of the company's shares are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of City Office REIT in a report on Friday, July 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold".

Institutional Trading of City Office REIT

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CIO. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC purchased a new position in City Office REIT in the 1st quarter worth about $1,474,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in City Office REIT by 66.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 38,606 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $213,000 after buying an additional 15,446 shares during the last quarter. Man Group plc purchased a new position in City Office REIT in the 4th quarter worth about $425,000. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its position in City Office REIT by 59.5% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 148,192 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $818,000 after buying an additional 55,258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of City Office REIT during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,283,000. Institutional investors own 67.47% of the company's stock.

City Office REIT Stock Up 0.1%

CIO traded up $0.01 during trading on Thursday, hitting $6.96. 407,121 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 308,335. The stock has a market cap of $280.73 million, a P/E ratio of -2.19, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.82. City Office REIT has a fifty-two week low of $4.19 and a fifty-two week high of $6.99. The company has a quick ratio of 3.31, a current ratio of 3.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The business's 50 day moving average is $6.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.62.

City Office REIT (NYSE:CIO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28. City Office REIT had a negative net margin of 71.27% and a negative return on equity of 20.26%. The business had revenue of $42.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $42.54 million. As a group, equities analysts expect that City Office REIT will post 1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

City Office REIT Company Profile

City Office REIT is an internally-managed real estate company focused on acquiring, owning and operating high-quality office properties located predominantly in Sun Belt markets. City Office currently owns or has a controlling interest in 5.7 million square feet of office properties. The Company has elected to be taxed as a real estate investment trust for U.S.