AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Shares Sold by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered its position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) by 9.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 3,670,784 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 389,713 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 2.58% of AvalonBay Communities worth $807,463,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter worth approximately $39,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the 4th quarter worth $44,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR acquired a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter worth about $66,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in AvalonBay Communities by 312.5% during the fourth quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 363 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Down 0.5 %

AVB stock traded down $1.02 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $213.60. The company had a trading volume of 324,458 shares, compared to its average volume of 668,922. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $177.40 and a fifty-two week high of $239.29. The company has a market capitalization of $30.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.64. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $217.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $222.27.

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AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.83 by ($0.03). AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 37.13% and a return on equity of 9.15%. Analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AVB has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $247.00 to $262.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $270.00 to $265.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley downgraded AvalonBay Communities from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $236.00 to $223.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $229.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $226.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AvalonBay Communities currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $238.64.

About AvalonBay Communities

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.