Barclays Issues Positive Forecast for Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Stock Price

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Free Report) had its price objective boosted by Barclays from $302.00 to $304.00 in a report published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the real estate investment trust's stock.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Essex Property Trust from $302.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Essex Property Trust from $325.00 to $300.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Essex Property Trust from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $297.00 to $303.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. BMO Capital Markets raised Essex Property Trust from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $323.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $306.63.

Essex Property Trust Trading Up 0.0 %

ESS traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $294.47. 378,696 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 470,499. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $285.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $292.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.52, a P/E/G ratio of 6.77 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. Essex Property Trust has a 52 week low of $225.40 and a 52 week high of $317.73.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.92 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Essex Property Trust will post 15.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $2.57 per share. This represents a $10.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.49%. This is a boost from Essex Property Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Essex Property Trust's dividend payout ratio is presently 84.92%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,353,157 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,955,205,000 after buying an additional 61,645 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,758,174 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $500,688,000 after buying an additional 32,102 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 4th quarter valued at $471,258,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,494,298 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $426,532,000 after buying an additional 70,785 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 16.1% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,329,516 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $392,766,000 after buying an additional 183,947 shares during the period. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.