Highwoods Properties (HIW) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $2.55B
• Dividend Yield: 7.83%
• Average Volume (3M): 1.43M
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 24.3
• Beta (1Y): 0.77
• Revenue Growth: -2.10%
• EPS Growth: -13.30%
• Country: US
• Employees: 350
• Sector: Real Estate
• Sector Strength: 53
• Industry: REIT - Office
• EPS (TTM): 0.26
• Shares Outstanding: 109,931,100
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 1,454,780
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 1,432,062
• PEG Ratio: 0.32
• Price to Book (P/B): 1.18
• Price to Sales (P/S): 3.47
• P/FCF Ratio: 16.81
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 2.42
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: 7.64
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 11.31
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: 10.10
• 1Y Price Target: $24.80
• Price Target Upside: 9.88% Upside
• Rating Consensus: Hold
• Number of Analyst Covering: 7
• EPS Forecast (FY): 0.93
• Revenue Forecast (FY): $857.12M

• Rating: 56 Neutral
• Price Target: $27.00 ▲(19.63% Upside)
• Action: Reiterated Date: 02/11/26
• Date: Action: Reiterated 02/11/26

The score is primarily held back by weakening profitability and data-quality uncertainty in the latest period, despite resilient operating cash flow and a stable (but leveraged) balance sheet. Technically, the stock remains in a downtrend with negative momentum. Offsetting factors include a high dividend yield and a generally constructive earnings-call outlook, though near-term headwinds and disposition execution risk limit upside confidence.

Positive Factors

Stable, strong operating cash flow

Highwoods shows durable operating cash generation over multiple years, with free cash flow generally tracking OCF. That steady cash flow underpins dividend coverage, funds capex and development, and provides flexibility for portfolio rotation and acquisitions even if near-term earnings are volatile.

Large, highly pre‑leased development pipeline (78%)

A pre-leased pipeline materially reduces development execution risk and shortens time to stabilized cash yields. With 78% pre-leased, a large portion of future NOI is contracted, supporting medium-term occupancy and cash flow as projects deliver and helping sustain FFO once stabilized.

Disciplined capital recycling and accretive Sunbelt acquisitions

Management is actively recycling capital into high-demand Sunbelt business districts with targeted ~8% stabilized yields, and plans dispositions to remain leverage‑neutral. This focused, yield-driven strategy can enhance portfolio quality and long-term cash returns if executed as guided.

Negative Factors

Sharp earnings deterioration and 2025 near‑zero net income

Net income compression to near zero signals weakening profitability and raises concern about earnings quality. While cash flow remains stronger, prolonged low reported earnings limit retained earnings, reduce buffer for downturns, and complicate stakeholder confidence in sustained dividend support.

Elevated leverage with disposition execution risk

Meaningful leverage reduces financial flexibility; the plan relies on timely ~$190–210M of dispositions. Failure or delay in executing sales would prolong higher interest exposure, constrain acquisition optionality, and increase refinancing or covenant risk during market stress.

Near‑term cash flow pressure from elevated leasing capex and low initial occupancy

Higher-than-normal leasing capital and upgrade spending compress free cash flow and dividend coverage in the near term. Additionally, newly acquired 600 at Legacy Union has low initial occupancy, delaying the asset's cash yield and creating temporary NOI dilution until occupancy and collections normalize.

Highwoods Properties Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

Highwoods Properties, Inc., headquartered in Raleigh, is a publicly-traded (NYSE:HIW) real estate investment trust (REIT) and a member of the S&P MidCap 400 Index. Highwoods is a fully-integrated office REIT that owns, develops, acquires, leases and manages properties primarily in the best business districts (BBDs) of Atlanta, Charlotte, Nashville, Orlando, Pittsburgh, Raleigh, Richmond and Tampa.

How the Company Makes Money

Highwoods Properties generates revenue primarily through leasing its office and mixed-use properties to tenants, which contributes a significant portion of its income through rental payments. The company benefits from long-term lease agreements, ensuring a stable cash flow. Additional revenue streams include property management fees and ancillary services provided to tenants. The company may also engage in strategic partnerships and joint ventures to enhance its market position and access new development opportunities. Highwoods’ focus on acquiring properties in high-growth markets and maintaining a well-managed portfolio further supports its earnings potential.

Highwoods Properties Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Mixed fundamentals: cash flow generation has been relatively strong and steady, but profitability has deteriorated sharply (net income falling to near breakeven in 2025). Balance sheet looks stable but moderately leveraged, and there are notable latest-year data inconsistencies that reduce confidence in trend interpretation.

Income Statement

Revenue was essentially flat to down from 2022–2024 (with a slight decline in 2024), and profitability has deteriorated materially: net income fell from $159M (2022) to $149M (2023) to $102M (2024), then to near breakeven in 2025 ($0.1M). Margins were healthy in 2022–2024 (gross profit around ~67% and net margin ~12% in 2024), but the sharp earnings compression in the latest year is a major negative. A data-quality red flag also exists in 2025 (revenue shown as $0 while EBITDA remains positive), which adds uncertainty to trend interpretation.

Balance Sheet

The balance sheet shows stable asset and equity levels over time (assets roughly ~$6.0B and equity around ~$2.36–$2.48B in 2021–2025). Leverage is meaningful for the sector: debt-to-equity ran about ~1.29–1.39 in 2022–2024, which is manageable but leaves less room for error if operating results soften. Return on equity has declined steadily (about ~6% in 2022 to ~4% in 2024), consistent with the earnings slowdown. 2025 debt is reported as $0, which is likely missing/invalid versus prior years and limits confidence in the latest-year leverage picture.

Cash Flow

Cash generation has been a relative strength. Operating cash flow has been consistently solid and fairly steady (roughly ~$358M–$422M across 2020–2024) and remained strong in 2025 (~$359M). Free cash flow has often tracked operating cash flow closely (notably 2021, 2022, 2024, and 2025), and cash flow has generally covered reported earnings well (in 2022 and 2024, free cash flow was about equal to net income; in 2023 it was lower). The key weakness is volatility in free cash flow (a sharp drop in 2023 followed by a strong rebound in 2024), and the disconnect between 2025 near-zero net income and strong cash flow suggests earnings quality/noise in the latest period.

Breakdown	Dec 2025	Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021
Income Statement
Total Revenue	806.11M	825.86M	834.00M	828.93M	768.01M
Gross Profit	544.74M	553.69M	565.22M	569.12M	531.57M
EBITDA	610.04M	550.50M	587.45M	556.95M	668.42M
Net Income	159.61M	102.25M	148.72M	159.06M	313.28M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets	6.27B	6.03B	6.00B	6.06B	5.70B
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments	27.36M	22.41M	25.12M	21.36M	23.15M
Total Debt	3.64B	3.29B	3.21B	3.20B	2.79B
Total Liabilities	3.84B	3.60B	3.52B	3.50B	3.08B
Stockholders Equity	2.38B	2.36B	2.43B	2.48B	2.48B
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow	166.56M	403.58M	216.95M	421.51M	414.56M
Operating Cash Flow	367.31M	403.58M	393.56M	421.78M	414.56M
Investing Cash Flow	-448.77M	-302.44M	-175.96M	-614.80M	-287.68M
Financing Cash Flow	90.83M	-99.04M	-205.75M	187.93M	-284.93M

Highwoods Properties Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Negative
• Last Price: 22.57
• 50DMA: Negative
• 100DMA: Negative
• 200DMA: Negative
• MACD: Positive
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For HIW, the sentiment is Negative. The current price of 22.57 is below the 20-day moving average (MA) of 23.61, below the 50-day MA of 24.87, and below the 200-day MA of 27.66, indicating a bearish trend. The MACD of -0.70 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 37.37 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 23.60 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Negative sentiment for HIW.

Highwoods Properties Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
Sector *	65 Neutral	$2.17B	12.19	3.79%	4.94%	3.15%	1.96%
KRC	57 Neutral	$3.59B	89.50	5.09%	5.75%	0.77%	62.58%
HIW	56 Neutral	$2.55B	24.27	5.37%	7.83%	-2.10%	-13.30%
CUZ	53 Neutral	$3.91B	106.88	0.85%	5.08%	16.38%	3.60%
PDM	51 Neutral	$926.38M	-6.00	-4.45%	6.09%	-1.23%	9.10%
SLG	47 Neutral	$3.11B	-36.60	-2.25%	6.95%	8.60%	―
DEI	45 Neutral	$1.68B	-67.23	1.03%	6.45%	-0.12%	―

Highwoods Properties Corporate Events

Highwoods Properties Launches $300 Million At-The-Market Equity Program

On February 11, 2026, Highwoods Properties, Inc. and Highwoods Realty Limited Partnership entered into a series of equity distribution agreements with a syndicate of major broker‑dealers to offer and sell up to $300 million of common stock through negotiated and at‑the‑market transactions on the New York Stock Exchange or through market makers. The structure also allows Highwoods to use forward sale agreements and warrant sale agreements, primarily with Jefferies, enabling the company to time physical settlement of share and warrant issuances, manage potential dilution and capital inflows, and compensate counterparties with commissions capped at 1.5% that may be treated as underwriting discounts or commissions.

Under the forward sale arrangements, counterparties will initially borrow and sell Highwoods shares, with the company expecting to later settle physically to receive cash proceeds based on forward prices, while retaining flexibility to cash or net share settle instead. The warrant framework permits Highwoods to sell warrants with strike prices set modestly above hedge-establishment levels, receive upfront premiums, and later deliver shares on exercise at settlement prices adjusted by up to 1.5%, collectively giving the company a flexible toolkit to raise equity capital over time while managing market impact and financing costs.

The most recent analyst rating on (HIW) stock is a Sell with a $24.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on Highwoods Properties stock, see the HIW Stock Forecast page.

Highwoods Properties Completes $350M Notes Offering

On November 14, 2025, Highwoods Realty Limited Partnership, the operational arm of Highwoods Properties, Inc., successfully completed a public offering of $350 million in notes with a 5.350% interest rate, set to mature on January 15, 2033. This financial move is poised to impact the company’s operations by providing capital for potential growth and strengthening its market position in the real estate sector.

The most recent analyst rating on (HIW) stock is a Hold with a $30.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on Highwoods Properties stock, see the HIW Stock Forecast page.