Norges Bank Purchases Shares of 1,016,699 Highwoods Properties, Inc. $HIW

Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 1,016,699 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $26,251,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 0.93% of Highwoods Properties as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HIW. Aew Capital Management L P lifted its position in Highwoods Properties by 95.4% during the third quarter. Aew Capital Management L P now owns 2,344,571 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $74,604,000 after buying an additional 1,144,991 shares in the last quarter. GRS Advisors LLC lifted its position in Highwoods Properties by 64.1% during the third quarter. GRS Advisors LLC now owns 2,046,809 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $65,129,000 after buying an additional 799,339 shares in the last quarter. Bayhunt Capital LLC acquired a new position in Highwoods Properties during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $13,125,000. Gotham Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Highwoods Properties by 88.1% during the third quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 910,271 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $28,965,000 after buying an additional 426,241 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Highwoods Properties by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,903,497 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $436,448,000 after buying an additional 407,406 shares in the last quarter. 96.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Highwoods Properties Trading Up 5.0%

HIW opened at $29.93 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.63 and a beta of 1.09. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $24.61 and its 200-day moving average is $24.80. Highwoods Properties, Inc. has a 52-week low of $20.45 and a 52-week high of $32.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46.

Highwoods Properties (NYSE:HIW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $214.03 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $209.06 million. Highwoods Properties had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 3.97%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.83 earnings per share. Highwoods Properties has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.400-3.68 EPS. Analysts expect that Highwoods Properties, Inc. will post 3.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Highwoods Properties Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. Highwoods Properties’s payout ratio is 238.10%.

Highwoods Properties announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, April 22nd that authorizes the company to repurchase $250.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the real estate investment trust to buy up to 9.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on HIW shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 price target on shares of Highwoods Properties in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Highwoods Properties from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Highwoods Properties from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Citigroup dropped 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 note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Highwoods Properties from $29.00 to $23.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $27.33.

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.