AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) Stock Rating Upgraded by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) from a neutral rating to an overweight rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have $262.00 price target on the real estate investment trust's stock, up from their prior price target of $247.00.

AVB has been the subject of several other research reports. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $244.00 to $241.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $234.00 to $233.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $222.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $213.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $225.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $231.33.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

Shares of AvalonBay Communities stock traded down $0.56 on Tuesday, hitting $226.94. 761,191 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 710,272. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.28 billion, a PE ratio of 31.13, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.98. AvalonBay Communities has a 1 year low of $169.37 and a 1 year high of $239.29. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $227.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $217.87.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.61 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $734.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $731.67 million. AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 36.20% and a return on equity of 8.84%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.66 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that AvalonBay Communities will post 11.03 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.00%. AvalonBay Communities's payout ratio is presently 93.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at AvalonBay Communities

In other AvalonBay Communities news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.47, for a total value of $5,532,538.59. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 87,239 shares in the company, valued at $20,367,689.33. The trade was a 21.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Raymond James & Associates raised its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 158,780 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $32,850,000 after acquiring an additional 1,048 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the 2nd quarter worth about $284,000. &PARTNERS acquired a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,538,000. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the 2nd quarter valued at about $226,000. Finally, Everhart Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 2nd quarter worth about $295,000. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About AvalonBay Communities

As of December 31, 2023, the Company owned or held a direct or indirect ownership interest in 299 apartment communities containing 90,669 apartment homes in 12 states and the District of Columbia, of which 18 communities were under development. The Company is an equity REIT in the business of developing, redeveloping, acquiring and managing apartment communities in leading metropolitan areas in New England, the New York/New Jersey Metro area, the Mid-Atlantic, the Pacific Northwest, and Northern and Southern California, as well as in the Company's expansion regions of Raleigh-Durham and Charlotte, North Carolina, Southeast Florida, Dallas and Austin, Texas, and Denver, Colorado.