Geode Capital Management LLC Purchases 32,102 Shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS)

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS - Free Report) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,758,174 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 32,102 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 2.74% of Essex Property Trust worth $500,688,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,353,157 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $2,955,205,000 after buying an additional 61,645 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Essex Property Trust during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $471,258,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Essex Property Trust by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,494,298 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $426,532,000 after purchasing an additional 70,785 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 772,883 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $220,612,000 after purchasing an additional 18,704 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Partners raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 607,775 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $173,475,000 after purchasing an additional 36,451 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.51% of the company's stock.

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Essex Property Trust Stock Up 6.9 %

NYSE ESS traded up $17.69 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $272.34. 892,548 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 396,044. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.60, a P/E/G ratio of 6.84 and a beta of 0.78. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a twelve month low of $230.90 and a twelve month high of $317.73. The business's 50-day moving average is $294.37 and its 200-day moving average is $292.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $2.52. Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 41.79% and a return on equity of 13.05%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $2.57 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is a positive change from Essex Property Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. This represents a $10.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.77%. Essex Property Trust's payout ratio is presently 89.08%.

Insider Activity at Essex Property Trust

In other news, Director Mary Kasaris sold 2,800 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were 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 $527,904. This represents a 61.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 7,298 shares of Essex Property Trust stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total transaction of $2,298,870.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,077,170. The trade was a 31.17 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 21,345 shares of company stock worth $6,682,539. Company insiders own 3.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ESS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $323.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Mizuho dropped their price target on Essex Property Trust from $325.00 to $300.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $302.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $314.00 to $305.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Essex Property Trust presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $307.16.

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.