Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) Stock Position Decreased by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its stake in shares of Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 46,313 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 511 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Highwoods Properties were worth $1,063,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in Highwoods Properties by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 13,731 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $315,000 after buying an additional 536 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Highwoods Properties by 6.1% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 12,369 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $255,000 after purchasing an additional 716 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Highwoods Properties by 1.3% in the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 62,573 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,290,000 after purchasing an additional 821 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its stake in Highwoods Properties by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 23,918 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $493,000 after purchasing an additional 937 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in shares of Highwoods Properties by 3.1% in the third quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 31,423 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $648,000 after buying an additional 943 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.31% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Highwoods Properties from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Highwoods Properties from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Highwoods Properties from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Highwoods Properties from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $24.75.

Highwoods Properties Stock Performance

Shares of Highwoods Properties stock opened at $26.93 on Friday. Highwoods Properties, Inc. has a 12 month low of $17.06 and a 12 month high of $27.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The stock has a market cap of $2.85 billion, a PE ratio of 22.07 and a beta of 1.20. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $25.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.77.

Highwoods Properties Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 20th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 17th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.43%. Highwoods Properties’s payout ratio is presently 163.93%.

About Highwoods Properties

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.