Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Sets New 1-Year Low - Here's What Happened

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $59.41 and last traded at $61.44, with a volume of 492016 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.82.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Truist Financial increased their target price on Equity Residential from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Equity Residential from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $78.51.

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Equity Residential Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $25.18 billion, a PE ratio of 24.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.36. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $70.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $71.62.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.6925 dividend. This is an increase from Equity Residential's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Equity Residential's payout ratio is currently 101.84%.

Insider Transactions at Equity Residential

In other news, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $46,262.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 25,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,840,340.34. This represents a 2.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 9,487 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $683,728.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 26,781 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,930,106.67. This trade represents a 26.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 19,763 shares of company stock valued at $1,424,217. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equity Residential

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Equity Residential by 25.0% during the 1st quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 10,881 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $779,000 after buying an additional 2,175 shares in the last quarter. LVW Advisors LLC increased its stake in Equity Residential by 28.6% during the first quarter. LVW Advisors LLC now owns 12,979 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $929,000 after acquiring an additional 2,888 shares during the last quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP increased its stake in Equity Residential by 1.1% during the first quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 98,217 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $7,313,000 after acquiring an additional 1,093 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 6.0% in the 1st quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 78,491 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $5,618,000 after purchasing an additional 4,464 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aurora Investment Managers LLC. boosted its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Aurora Investment Managers LLC. now owns 56,187 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $4,022,000 after purchasing an additional 879 shares during the period. 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.