Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Price Target Lowered to $78.00 at Scotiabank

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Free Report) had its price objective lowered by Scotiabank from $81.00 to $78.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a sector perform rating on the real estate investment trust's stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Equity Residential from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $77.00 in a research note on Monday, August 26th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Equity Residential in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $83.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Truist Financial upped their price target on Equity Residential from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Bank of America lowered Equity Residential from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $78.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Eleven equities 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, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $77.25.

Equity Residential Stock Down 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE EQR traded down $1.57 during trading on Thursday, hitting $73.07. 1,834,874 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,852,064. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.26, a P/E/G ratio of 5.94 and a beta of 0.90. Equity Residential has a fifty-two week low of $54.53 and a fifty-two week high of $78.83. The business's fifty day moving average is $74.39 and its 200 day moving average is $70.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.13.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 24th were given a dividend of $0.675 per share. This represents a $2.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 24th. Equity Residential's dividend payout ratio is currently 110.66%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equity Residential

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Equity Residential by 482.3% in the second quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,153,749 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $496,040,000 after purchasing an additional 5,925,177 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 806.4% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,259,145 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $317,136,000 after acquiring an additional 3,789,234 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 1,459.8% in the third quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,949,473 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $145,158,000 after purchasing an additional 1,824,494 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 29.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,746,494 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $576,804,000 after buying an additional 1,741,840 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI grew its position in shares of Equity Residential by 679.0% during the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 594,774 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $40,528,000 after buying an additional 518,424 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.68% of the company's stock.

Equity Residential Company Profile

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.