LADENBURG THALM/SH SH Begins Coverage on Whitestone REIT (NYSE:WSR)

Equities research analysts at LADENBURG THALM/SH SH started coverage on shares of Whitestone REIT (NYSE:WSR) in a research note issued on Tuesday. The firm set a “buy” rating and a $17.00 price target on the real estate investment trust’s stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH’s price objective points to a potential upside of 22.34% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on WSR. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of Whitestone REIT in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Whitestone REIT in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Whitestone REIT from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Whitestone REIT currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $16.00.

Whitestone REIT Price Performance

WSR stock traded up $0.01 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $13.90. The stock had a trading volume of 35,679 shares, compared to its average volume of 193,661. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $13.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a current ratio of 1.74. The stock has a market cap of $708.97 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.35 and a beta of 0.81. Whitestone REIT has a 1-year low of $11.43 and a 1-year high of $14.77.

Whitestone REIT (NYSE:WSR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26. Whitestone REIT had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 28.16%.The firm had revenue of $41.05 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $39.21 million. Whitestone REIT has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.030-1.070 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Whitestone REIT will post 0.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Whitestone REIT declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Friday, December 19th that permits the company to repurchase $50.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the real estate investment trust to reacquire up to 7.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Whitestone REIT Company Profile

Whitestone REIT is a real estate investment trust headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, that specializes in the acquisition, development and management of retail and mixed-use properties. The company’s portfolio is concentrated in high-growth Texas markets, including the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, Houston, Austin and San Antonio, where it primarily owns open-air neighborhood and community shopping centers. Whitestone REIT focuses on convenience- and necessity-based retail, partnering with grocers, fitness operators, service providers and other essential tenants to drive consistent foot traffic and stable occupancy.

In addition to property ownership, Whitestone REIT provides asset and property management services, leasing expertise and development capabilities.