Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a report published on Thursday, Marketbeat reports.
A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on AVB. Barclays reduced their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $243.00 to $230.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $247.00 to $262.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $244.00 to $241.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Mizuho raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the company from $239.00 to $242.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $270.00 to $265.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $235.73.
Check Out Our Latest Report on AvalonBay Communities
AvalonBay Communities Stock Down 1.0 %
NYSE AVB traded down $2.13 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $217.97. The company's stock had a trading volume of 741,056 shares, compared to its average volume of 650,565. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.72, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.99. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $219.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $222.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. AvalonBay Communities has a twelve month low of $172.85 and a twelve month high of $239.29.
AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.83 by ($0.03). AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 37.13% and a return on equity of 9.15%. Analysts anticipate that AvalonBay Communities will post 11.53 earnings per share for the current year.
AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.21%. This is a positive change from AvalonBay Communities's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. AvalonBay Communities's payout ratio is presently 89.59%.
Institutional Trading of AvalonBay Communities
A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AVB. Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 225,926 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $49,697,000 after acquiring an additional 13,286 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,283,000. Sophron Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the 4th quarter valued at about $11,754,000. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 12.0% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 6,512 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,432,000 after buying an additional 697 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 86,692 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $19,070,000 after buying an additional 10,040 shares during the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
About AvalonBay Communities
(
Get Free Report)
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.
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