Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Director Mary Kasaris Sells 2,800 Shares

Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) Director Mary Kasaris sold 2,800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.80, for a total value of $842,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 1,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $527,904. This represents a 61.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Essex Property Trust Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE ESS traded up $4.06 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $299.07. 106,045 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 463,097. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.92, a PEG ratio of 6.84 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $289.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $294.59. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a twelve month low of $230.90 and a twelve month high of $317.73.

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

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Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $2.57 dividend. This represents a $10.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is 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 (DPR) is currently 89.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ESS has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Truist Financial increased their target price on Essex Property Trust from $292.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Essex Property Trust from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $297.00 to $303.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays increased their target price on Essex Property Trust from $302.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price 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. One 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 company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $307.16.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in Essex Property Trust by 2,400.0% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 100 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Essex Property Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Essex Property Trust by 37.5% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 154 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in Essex Property Trust in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.51% of the company's stock.

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.