Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. (PDM) Position Lowered by AEW Capital Management L P

AEW Capital Management L P lowered its position in shares of Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:PDM) by 1.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,477,519 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 62,700 shares during the period. Piedmont Office Realty Trust comprises 2.8% of AEW Capital Management L P’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. AEW Capital Management L P owned 3.77% of Piedmont Office Realty Trust worth $115,466,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new position in Piedmont Office Realty Trust during the first quarter worth approximately $141,000. James Investment Research Inc. purchased a new position in Piedmont Office Realty Trust during the first quarter worth approximately $141,000. Cornerstone Capital Management Holdings LLC. purchased a new position in Piedmont Office Realty Trust during the first quarter worth approximately $164,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in Piedmont Office Realty Trust by 31.5% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 7,696 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $165,000 after buying an additional 1,843 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Sky Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Piedmont Office Realty Trust during the second quarter worth approximately $173,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.40% of the company’s stock.

Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:PDM) opened at 19.96 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.84 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a 50-day moving average of $20.62 and a 200 day moving average of $21.44. Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.61 and a 12 month high of $23.08.

Piedmont Office Realty Trust (NYSE:PDM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 2nd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $148.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $147.66 million. Piedmont Office Realty Trust had a net margin of 9.71% and a return on equity of 2.67%. The company’s revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.40 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. will post $0.50 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 25th will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 23rd. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.21%. Piedmont Office Realty Trust’s payout ratio is 221.06%.

Piedmont Office Realty Trust announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, May 3rd that permits the company to buyback $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the real estate investment trust to repurchase up to 8.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

A number of research firms have recently commented on PDM. BidaskClub lowered shares of Piedmont Office Realty Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 24th. Zacks Investment Research upgraded shares of Piedmont Office Realty Trust from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price target for the company in a research report on Saturday, May 6th. Finally, ValuEngine lowered shares of Piedmont Office Realty Trust from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 29th.

In other news, CAO Laura P. Moon sold 7,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.64, for a total transaction of $168,792.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 24,620 shares in the company, valued at approximately $532,776.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Piedmont Office Realty Trust Company Profile

Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc is an integrated self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT). The Company’s business consists primarily of owning, managing, operating, leasing, acquiring, developing, investing in, and disposing of office real estate assets. As of December 31, 2016, the Company owned and operated 65 in-service office properties, one redevelopment asset, two development assets and one office building through an unconsolidated joint venture.

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