Benjamin Edwards Inc. Grows Position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) by 203.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,210 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 4,163 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc.'s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $1,399,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of AVB. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,240,436 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $504,658,000 after purchasing an additional 78,800 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,074,269 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $429,145,000 after acquiring an additional 13,631 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 678.9% during the 3rd 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 valued at $386,315,000 after acquiring an additional 1,494,872 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 11.9% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,183,121 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $244,776,000 after acquiring an additional 126,055 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 461,937 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $95,570,000 after acquiring an additional 26,859 shares during the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AVB traded up $0.17 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $226.57. 122,149 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 713,420. The company has a market cap of $32.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.64. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a one year low of $169.37 and a one year high of $239.29. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $226.73 and a 200 day moving average of $215.97.

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

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. AvalonBay Communities's dividend payout ratio is 93.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at AvalonBay Communities

In other AvalonBay Communities news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 2,261 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.78, for a total value of $528,576.58. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 111,436 shares in the company, valued at $26,051,508.08. This represents a 1.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $234.00 to $233.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Zelman & Associates upgraded AvalonBay Communities to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. BNP Paribas began coverage on AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $250.00 price objective for the company. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $213.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $212.00 to $247.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $228.67.

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.