Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd Increases Stock Holdings in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS)

Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd increased its position in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS - Free Report) by 61.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,533 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 2,100 shares during the quarter. Essex Property Trust makes up about 0.6% of Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd's holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $1,579,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 124.0% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 224 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 4,675 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,334,000 after acquiring an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 19,656 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $5,611,000 after acquiring an additional 986 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust during the fourth quarter valued at $7,027,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 3rd quarter worth about $541,000. 96.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Essex Property Trust news, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 4,929 shares of Essex Property Trust stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $314.99, for a total value of $1,552,585.71. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 13,662 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,303,393.38. The trade was a 26.51 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Mary Kasaris sold 2,800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.80, for a total transaction of $842,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $527,904. The trade was a 61.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,345 shares of company stock worth $6,682,539 in the last three months. 3.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

Shares of ESS traded down $0.12 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $262.73. The stock had a trading volume of 188,229 shares, compared to its average volume of 396,448. The firm has a market cap of $16.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.69, a PEG ratio of 6.84 and a beta of 0.78. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 12 month low of $230.90 and a 12 month high of $317.73. The business has a fifty day moving average of $293.95 and a 200 day moving average of $292.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $2.52. Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 13.05% and a net margin of 41.79%. Equities analysts predict that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.96 EPS for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $2.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from Essex Property Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. This represents a $10.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.91%. Essex Property Trust's payout ratio is currently 89.08%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Essex Property Trust from $302.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $314.00 to $305.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $297.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Essex Property Trust from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $308.00 to $310.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Essex Property Trust from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $297.00 to $303.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $307.16.

Essex Property Trust Company Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.