Whitestone REIT (NYSE:WSR) Plans Dividend Increase – $0.04 Per Share

Whitestone REIT (NYSE:WSR) declared a monthly dividend on Tuesday, March 5th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Thursday, May 2nd will be paid a dividend of 0.0413 per share by the real estate investment trust on Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 1st. This is a boost from Whitestone REIT’s previous monthly dividend of $0.04.

Whitestone REIT has increased its dividend payment by an average of 10.1% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 1 years. Whitestone REIT has a dividend payout ratio of 333.3% indicating that 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 Whitestone REIT to earn $1.09 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.50 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 45.9%.

Whitestone REIT Stock Performance

Shares of WSR stock opened at $11.48 on Tuesday. Whitestone REIT has a 12-month low of $8.21 and a 12-month high of $13.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $573.54 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.19. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $11.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $11.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.80 and a quick ratio of 1.80.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on WSR shares. Truist Financial raised Whitestone REIT from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $11.00 to $13.50 in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $15.00 price target on shares of Whitestone REIT in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Alliance Global Partners started coverage on Whitestone REIT in a research note on Monday, March 18th. They set a “buy” rating and a $15.00 price target for the company. Finally, B. Riley reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Whitestone REIT in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $13.63.

About Whitestone REIT

Whitestone REIT (NYSE: WSR) is a community-centered real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, owns, operates, and develops open-air, retail centers located in some of the fastest growing markets in the country: Phoenix, Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio. Our centers are convenience focused: merchandised with a mix of service-oriented tenants providing food (restaurants and grocers), self-care (health and fitness), services (financial and logistics), education and entertainment to the surrounding communities.