Employees Retirement System of Texas Raises Stake in Empire State Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESRT)

Employees Retirement System of Texas increased its holdings in Empire State Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESRT - Free Report) by 81.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 512,000 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 230,000 shares during the quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas owned 0.31% of Empire State Realty Trust worth $5,284,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in Empire State Realty Trust by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 28,391 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $315,000 after buying an additional 1,231 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in Empire State Realty Trust by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 65,276 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $672,000 after purchasing an additional 1,722 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Empire State Realty Trust during the third quarter worth $25,000. Vert Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Empire State Realty Trust by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Vert Asset Management LLC now owns 55,749 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $575,000 after buying an additional 2,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Empire State Realty Trust by 22.8% in the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 14,349 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $148,000 after buying an additional 2,668 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.10% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Empire State Realty Trust

In other Empire State Realty Trust news, EVP Thomas P. Durels sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.11, for a total transaction of $101,375.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,307 shares in the company, valued at $602,629.77. This represents a 14.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 30,122 shares of company stock worth $242,761. 13.95% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Empire State Realty Trust from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Wolfe Research raised Empire State Realty Trust from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $10.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th.

Empire State Realty Trust Trading Up 2.6 %

NYSE:ESRT traded up $0.18 on Friday, reaching $7.04. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,372,281 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,191,177. The firm has a market cap of $1.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.13 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 3.72, a current ratio of 3.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. Empire State Realty Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $6.56 and a 12-month high of $11.62. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $8.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.76.

Empire State Realty Trust (NYSE:ESRT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $0.19. Empire State Realty Trust had a net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 2.84%. The company had revenue of $155.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $192.62 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Empire State Realty Trust, Inc. will post 0.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Empire State Realty Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.035 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.99%. Empire State Realty Trust's payout ratio is presently 50.00%.

About Empire State Realty Trust

Empire State Realty Trust, Inc NYSE: ESRT is a NYC-focused REIT that owns and operates a portfolio of modernized, amenitized, and well-located office, retail, and multifamily assets. The company is the recognized leader in energy efficiency and indoor environmental quality. ESRT's flagship Empire State Building - the "World's Most Famous Building" - includes its Observatory, Tripadvisor's 2023 Travelers' Choice Awards: Best of the Best the #1 attraction in the US for two consecutive years.