City Office REIT, Inc. (NYSE:CIO) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

City Office REIT, Inc. (NYSE:CIO) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 406,700 shares, a growth of 5.9% from the March 31st total of 384,200 shares. Currently, 1.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 249,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.6 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded City Office REIT from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th.

City Office REIT Stock Performance

Shares of CIO opened at $4.68 on Thursday. City Office REIT has a fifty-two week low of $3.45 and a fifty-two week high of $6.70. The company has a current ratio of 3.33, a quick ratio of 3.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The business’s 50-day moving average is $4.57 and its 200-day moving average is $4.91.

City Office REIT (NYSE:CIO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The real estate investment trust reported ($0.11) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.42). City Office REIT had a negative net margin of 1.50% and a negative return on equity of 0.40%. The business had revenue of $44.32 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.47 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.38 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that City Office REIT will post 1.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

City Office REIT Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.56%. City Office REIT’s payout ratio is currently -160.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at City Office REIT

In other City Office REIT news, Director Michael Mazan purchased 39,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $4.22 per share, with a total value of $164,580.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 39,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $164,580. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 3.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On City Office REIT

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of City Office REIT by 73.2% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,059,006 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $4,501,000 after acquiring an additional 447,484 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of City Office REIT by 1.0% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,913,640 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $16,633,000 after acquiring an additional 40,432 shares during the period. Penserra Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of City Office REIT by 14.4% in the third quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 101,255 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $430,000 after acquiring an additional 12,773 shares during the period. Diligent Investors LLC bought a new stake in shares of City Office REIT in the third quarter valued at approximately $98,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of City Office REIT by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 21,689 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $133,000 after acquiring an additional 2,821 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.47% of the company’s stock.

About City Office REIT

City Office REIT is an internally-managed real estate company focused on acquiring, owning and operating high-quality office properties located predominantly in Sun Belt markets. City Office currently owns or has a controlling interest in 5.7 million square feet of office properties. The Company has elected to be taxed as a real estate investment trust for U.S.