Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Sees Strong Trading Volume - Here's What Happened

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Get Free Report) shares saw strong trading volume on Friday . 1,161,433 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 35% from the previous session's volume of 1,799,086 shares.The stock last traded at $70.72 and had previously closed at $69.49.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EQR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Equity Residential from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $62.00 to $83.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Equity Residential from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Equity Residential from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Equity Residential in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $81.00 price target for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Equity Residential from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $78.14.

Equity Residential Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.13. The stock's 50 day moving average is $73.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.07 billion, a PE ratio of 29.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.92.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be issued a $0.675 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.78%. Equity Residential's payout ratio is currently 110.66%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equity Residential

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of EQR. State Street Corp grew its stake in Equity Residential by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 23,922,127 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,796,976,000 after acquiring an additional 321,002 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,353,944 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $694,441,000 after purchasing an additional 132,638 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Equity Residential by 29.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,746,494 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $576,804,000 after purchasing an additional 1,741,840 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 8.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,745,615 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $576,737,000 after purchasing an additional 591,866 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its position in Equity Residential by 1.2% during the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 5,001,360 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $346,794,000 after buying an additional 60,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.68% of the company's stock.

About Equity Residential

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.