Cousins Properties' (CUZ) portfolio of class A office assets, concentrated in the high-growth markets in the Sun Belt region, positions it well to ride the growth curve amid the improving demand for premium office assets. Its capital-recycling efforts and a healthy balance sheet augur well. Over the past six months, shares of this Atlanta, GA-based office real estate investment trust (REIT) have gained 15.6% compared with the industry's upside of 0.4%. Given the strength in its fundamentals, there seems to ...

EschCollection As many of my followers and readers have probably noticed, I have been actively covering Cousins Properties Incorporated (NYSE:NYSE:CUZ) since mid 2023. While I was bullish on the Stock even earlier than that, my conviction on the thesis really strengthened further once the overall office market started to become increasingly punished by the market due to rising financing costs and structurally weakening demand. As we can see in the chart below, CUZ has clearly underperformed the broader ...

Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - The company reported $0.65 per share in FFO, exceeding street consensus, and raised full-year guidance [15] - Same property net operating income (NOI) grew by 6.6%, marking the best performance since Q2 2021 for cash NOI and since Q2 2017 for GAAP NOI [30] - The net debt to EBITDA ratio stood at 5.25 times, among the lowest in the office sector [15] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - The company leased 404,000 square feet with a positive cash rent roll-up of 5.3%, continuing a streak of 40 consecutive quarters of positive cash rent roll-up [15] - Average net rent for the quarter was $36.06, the third highest in the company's history, while average net effective rent was $24.20, consistent with 2023 results [43] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - The return to work trend is accelerating, with companies like UPS and Truist implementing five-day in-office policies, leading to increased demand for office space [16] - Office vacancy is concentrated in a small subset of buildings, with 30% of office buildings accounting for over 90% of overall vacancy [16] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company plans to focus on acquiring and repositioning lifestyle office properties in the Sun Belt, with a priority on near-term accretion [17] - The strategy includes thoughtful capital allocation and a focus on development and redevelopment projects as key growth contributors [17] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed optimism about returning occupancy to stabilized levels, driven by trends such as the return to office and migration to the Sun Belt [39] - The company is well-positioned with a strong balance sheet and minimal near-term debt maturities, allowing for flexibility in capital markets [27] Other Important Information - The company received investment-grade ratings from S&P (BBB) and Moody's (Baa2), enhancing access to capital [25][33] - The leasing pipeline remains healthy, with a notable increase in early-stage inquiries and tour activity [49] Q&A Session Summary Question: What drove the NOI increase in Q1? - The increase was attributed to higher occupancy in specific properties and timing of lower real estate taxes [53] Question: What is the timeline for achieving above 90% occupancy? - Management aims to return occupancy to normalized levels over a multi-year process, with confidence in achieving this due to the quality of the portfolio [56] Question: How is parking revenue performing? - Parking revenue increased by 10%, driven by both volume and rate improvements [60] Question: What are the expectations for occupancy in 2025? - There are concerns about specific large expirations affecting overall retention, but management remains optimistic about repositioning properties [61] Question: What is the impact of Oracle's move to Nashville? - The move is expected to positively impact the company's Neuhoff project, attracting more tenants to the area [98]

Cousins Properties’ (CUZ) first-quarter 2024 funds from operations (FFO) per share of 65 cents beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 63 cents.Results reflect better-than-anticipated revenues. Although the company witnessed healthy leasing activity, higher interest expenses acted as a dampener. CUZ also revised its 2024 outlook for FFO per share.Quarterly rental property revenues came in at $208.8 million, outpacing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $201.8 million.On a year-over-year basis, while FFO per share ...

For the quarter ended March 2024, Cousins Properties (CUZ) reported revenue of $208.82 million, up 4.4% over the same period last year. EPS came in at $0.65, compared to $0.15 in the year-ago quarter.The reported revenue represents a surprise of +3.47% over the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $201.81 million. With the consensus EPS estimate being $0.63, the EPS surprise was +3.17%.While investors closely watch year-over-year changes in headline numbers -- revenue and earnings -- and how they compare to Wall Str ...

Financing Activity | --- | |-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | EARNINGS RELEASE | | | | Earnings Guidance | | Full year 2024 earnings guidance updated as follows: | | • Net income betw ...

UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549 FORM 10-Q ☑ QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 For the quarterly period ended March 31, 2024 OR ☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 For the transition period from to Commission file number: 001-11312 COUSINS PROPERTIES INCORPORATED (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter) (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation ...

Investors might want to bet on Cousins Properties (CUZ) , as it has been recently upgraded to a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). This upgrade is essentially a reflection of an upward trend in earnings estimates -- one of the most powerful forces impacting stock prices.The sole determinant of the Zacks rating is a company's changing earnings picture. The Zacks Consensus Estimate -- the consensus of EPS estimates from the sell-side analysts covering the stock -- for the current and following years is tracked by the syste ...

Investors in Cousins Properties Incorporated (CUZ) need to pay close attention to the stock based on moves in the options market lately. That is because the Jul 19, 2024 $2.50 Call had some of the highest implied volatility of all equity options today.What is Implied Volatility?Implied volatility shows how much movement the market is expecting in the future. Options with high levels of implied volatility suggest that investors in the underlying stocks are expecting a big move in one direction or the other. ...

Cousins Properties’ (CUZ) portfolio of class A office assets, concentrated in the high-growth markets in the Sun Belt region, positions it well to ride the growth curve. Its capital-recycling efforts and a robust balance sheet bode well. However, competition from other industry players is expected to adversely impact Cousins Properties’ pricing power. High supply in the office real estate market and high interest rates add to its woes.What’s Aiding CUZ?With the steady return of the workforce to offices, Cou ...