Healthcare Realty Trust Incorporated (NYSE:HR) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Healthcare Realty Trust Incorporated (NYSE:HR) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 13,840,000 shares, a growth of 6.5% from the September 30th total of 13,000,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 3,390,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.1 days.

Healthcare Realty Trust Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE HR traded up $0.22 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $17.40. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 388,141 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,443,664. Healthcare Realty Trust has a 12 month low of $12.77 and a 12 month high of $18.90. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $17.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $16.89.

Healthcare Realty Trust (NYSE:HR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The real estate investment trust reported ($0.39) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by ($0.77). Healthcare Realty Trust had a negative return on equity of 9.42% and a negative net margin of 45.63%. The business had revenue of $316.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $317.90 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.39 earnings per share. Healthcare Realty Trust’s quarterly revenue was down 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Healthcare Realty Trust will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Healthcare Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. Healthcare Realty Trust’s payout ratio is currently -78.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Thomas N. Bohjalian acquired 9,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $17.39 per share, with a total value of $156,510.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 22,252 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $386,962.28. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director John Knox Singleton bought 6,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $18.24 per share, for a total transaction of $118,560.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 57,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,041,175.68. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas N. Bohjalian purchased 9,000 shares of Healthcare Realty Trust stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $17.39 per share, for a total transaction of $156,510.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,252 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $386,962.28. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 15,728 shares of company stock worth $279,069 in the last ninety days. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Healthcare Realty Trust by 1.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 54,246,277 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $767,585,000 after buying an additional 723,197 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of Healthcare Realty Trust by 52.3% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 10,942,261 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $154,833,000 after purchasing an additional 3,758,040 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Healthcare Realty Trust by 7.2% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,856,286 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $96,513,000 after purchasing an additional 395,243 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Healthcare Realty Trust by 2.8% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,782,253 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $81,820,000 after purchasing an additional 158,342 shares during the period. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in Healthcare Realty Trust by 6.7% in the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 4,784,186 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $78,843,000 after purchasing an additional 301,747 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on HR shares. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Healthcare Realty Trust from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Wedbush raised their price objective on Healthcare Realty Trust from $15.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $17.00 target price (up previously from $16.00) on shares of Healthcare Realty Trust in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.17.

About Healthcare Realty Trust

Healthcare Realty (NYSE: HR) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns and operates medical outpatient buildings primarily located around market-leading hospital campuses. The Company selectively grows its portfolio through property acquisition and development. As the first and largest REIT to specialize in medical outpatient buildings, Healthcare Realty's portfolio includes more than 700 properties totaling over 40 million square feet concentrated in 15 growth markets.