Intech Investment Management LLC Acquires New Stake in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,229 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $490,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,245,028 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,097,971,000 after buying an additional 196,938 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in AvalonBay Communities by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,590,539 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,009,781,000 after acquiring an additional 27,629 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,060,497 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $914,627,000 after acquiring an additional 55,588 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,585,802 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $805,113,000 after buying an additional 27,988 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,266,701 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $498,606,000 after purchasing an additional 26,265 shares in the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

AvalonBay Communities stock traded up $0.36 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $213.50. The company had a trading volume of 452,396 shares, compared to its average volume of 669,604. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.64. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $217.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $222.58. The company has a market capitalization of $30.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.00. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12-month low of $177.40 and a 12-month high of $239.29.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.83 by ($0.03). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 9.15% and a net margin of 37.13%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $1.75 dividend. This is a positive change from AvalonBay Communities's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.28%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. AvalonBay Communities's payout ratio is 92.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVB has been the subject of a number of research reports. Mizuho raised AvalonBay Communities from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $239.00 to $242.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Zelman & Associates raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $226.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $247.00 to $262.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded AvalonBay Communities from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $236.00 to $223.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $238.64.

AvalonBay Communities Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.