Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Shares Sold by Bank of Montreal Can

Bank of Montreal Can lessened its position in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS - Free Report) by 35.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 53,162 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 29,787 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can owned approximately 0.08% of Essex Property Trust worth $15,175,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MML Investors Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 1.9% in the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 3,024 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $893,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its position in Essex Property Trust by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 154,194 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $45,550,000 after buying an additional 15,087 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 15.6% in the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,074 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $319,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 1.3% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 31,780 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $9,388,000 after acquiring an additional 421 shares during the period. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 25.2% in the third quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 3,662 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,082,000 after acquiring an additional 737 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.51% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ESS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Essex Property Trust from $314.00 to $305.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $297.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $304.00 to $303.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Essex Property Trust from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $308.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised Essex Property Trust from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $323.00 to $310.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Essex Property Trust has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $307.11.

Essex Property Trust Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ESS traded up $3.47 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $275.37. 361,647 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 401,967. The firm has a market cap of $17.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.84 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 1-year low of $230.90 and a 1-year high of $317.73. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $291.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $291.63.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $2.52. Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 41.79% and a return on equity of 13.05%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $2.57 per share. This represents a $10.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.73%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This is a positive change from Essex Property Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. Essex Property Trust's dividend payout ratio is currently 89.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essex Property Trust

In related news, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 7,298 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total value of $2,298,870.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,077,170. This trade represents a 31.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Mary Kasaris sold 2,800 shares of Essex Property Trust stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.80, for a total value of $842,240.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,755 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $527,904. This represents a 61.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 21,345 shares of company stock valued at $6,682,539. 3.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Essex Property Trust Company Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.