CUZ Q2 FFO Beats Estimates on Leasing, Revenues Top, Rents Improve

Rental property revenues increased 11.8% year over year to $265.7 million and surpassed the consensus mark of $263.6 million.

CUZ's Leasing Activity Supports Growth

Cousins executed 924,000 square feet of office leases during the quarter. New and expansion leases accounted for 395,000 square feet, or 43% of total leasing activity.

Pricing remained favorable. Cash-basis second-generation net rent per square foot increased 9.2%, while straight-line second-generation net rent rose 26.8%. Weighted average office occupancy improved to 89.4% from 88.9% in the prior quarter.

Period-end leased space reached its highest level since the first quarter of 2020. Management also highlighted a robust late-stage leasing pipeline as trophy office fundamentals in its Sun Belt markets tightened.

Cousins' Revenue Base Expands

Total revenues were $268.5 million, up from $240.1 million a year earlier. Fee income climbed to $2.3 million from $0.5 million, partly supporting the top-line increase.

Rental property operating expenses rose to $84.7 million from $74.2 million. General and administrative expenses increased to $12.1 million from $9.7 million, while interest expense advanced to $47.1 million from $38.5 million.

The operating portfolio comprised 39 properties and 22.27 million rentable square feet at quarter-end.

Cousins Advances Portfolio Recycling

During the quarter, Cousins purchased its joint venture partner's 10% interest in 100 Mill, a 287,000-square-foot Phoenix office property, for $18.5 million.

The company also sold Research Park Plaza V, a 173,000-square-foot Austin office asset, for $42.0 million, generating the quarterly gain. After quarter-end, it sold One Eleven Congress in Austin for $208.0 million.

Cousins also acquired a preferred equity interest in the 199,000-square-foot 5th & Walsh office development in Austin after quarter-end. Its $31.5 million funding commitment is expected to be invested in 2027.

CUZ Strengthens Its Financing Profile

Cousins closed a new five-year $1.2 billion unsecured credit facility, replacing a $1.0 billion facility scheduled to mature in April 2027. It also extended existing $400 million and $100 million unsecured term loans and reduced borrowing spreads.

As of June 30, 2026, cash and cash equivalents were $6.7 million, up from $6.3 million at prior quarter-end. Net debt to annualized EBITDAre was 5.57, down from 5.66 in the prior quarter, while fixed-charge coverage declined to 3.39 from 3.45.

Cousins Raises 2026 FFO Guidance

Cousins raised the lower end of its 2026 FFO guidance to $2.92 per share from $2.90 while maintaining the upper end at $2.98. The midpoint increased to $2.95 from $2.94. Management attributed the revision to leasing activity that exceeded its prior forecast and recent transaction activity. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is pinned at $2.95, in line with the midpoint guidance.

CUZ's Zacks Rank

Cousins currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Performance of Other Office REITs

BXP, Inc. BXP reported second-quarter 2026 FFO of $1.78 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.71. FFO rose 4.1% from the year-ago period. Results reflected higher occupancy and same-property NOI growth, which supported the FFO beat. Total portfolio occupancy climbed 100 basis points sequentially to 88.4%.

SL Green Realty Corp. SLG delivered second-quarter 2026 FFO of $1.43, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.19 by 20.17%. However, FFO declined 12.3% from $1.63 in the year-ago quarter. The results reflected stronger Manhattan leasing, higher occupancy and growth in same-store cash NOI.

Note: Anything related to earnings presented in this write-up represents funds from operations (FFO), a widely used metric to gauge the performance of REITs.

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