Whitestone REIT (NYSE:WSR) Short Interest Down 28.6% in February

Whitestone REIT (NYSE:WSR) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 301,700 shares, a drop of 28.6% from the February 13th total of 422,600 shares. Approximately 0.6% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 223,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.4 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on WSR. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Whitestone REIT in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Whitestone REIT from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $16.00 price objective on shares of Whitestone REIT in a report on Tuesday, December 10th.

Whitestone REIT Stock Performance

WSR stock traded up $0.15 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $14.47. The company had a trading volume of 106,779 shares, compared to its average volume of 265,851. Whitestone REIT has a 1-year low of $10.77 and a 1-year high of $15.36. The company has a quick ratio of 2.17, a current ratio of 2.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $13.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $13.87. The firm has a market cap of $732.59 million, a PE ratio of 35.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.29.

Whitestone REIT Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a $0.045 dividend. This represents a $0.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. Whitestone REIT’s payout ratio is 76.06%.

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.