Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. Acquires Shares of 36,400 AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 36,400 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $8,007,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in AVB. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 678.9% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,715,050 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $386,315,000 after acquiring an additional 1,494,872 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,245,028 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $2,097,971,000 after purchasing an additional 196,938 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 51.7% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 554,290 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $121,927,000 after purchasing an additional 188,906 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter valued at $35,153,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter valued at about $23,513,000. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Remove Ads

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

AvalonBay Communities stock traded down $1.75 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $212.61. 816,481 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 628,718. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $217.86 and a 200-day moving average price of $222.78. The stock has a market cap of $30.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.00. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a one year low of $177.40 and a one year high of $239.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.64.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.83 by ($0.03). AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 37.13% and a return on equity of 9.15%. On average, equities analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $1.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.29%. This is an increase from AvalonBay Communities's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. AvalonBay Communities's payout ratio is currently 92.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on AVB. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised AvalonBay Communities from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $247.00 to $262.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays reduced their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $226.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Zelman & Associates upgraded AvalonBay Communities from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $238.64.

AvalonBay Communities Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.