National Pension Service Buys 18,888 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

National Pension Service raised its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) by 9.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 212,409 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 18,888 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned 0.15% of AvalonBay Communities worth $47,845,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Intact Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 8.0% in the third quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 31,100 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $7,005,000 after purchasing an additional 2,300 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 12.2% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 336,587 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $75,816,000 after buying an additional 36,732 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in AvalonBay Communities by 11.5% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 65,826 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $15,110,000 after buying an additional 6,811 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.3% during the third quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 51,154 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $11,523,000 after buying an additional 1,152 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 36.9% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,139 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $256,000 after acquiring an additional 307 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.61% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on AVB. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $229.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $234.00 to $233.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. BNP Paribas started coverage on AvalonBay Communities in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $222.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $227.06.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

NYSE AVB traded down $1.97 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $224.41. 453,155 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 728,415. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $225.62 and a 200-day moving average of $210.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a one year low of $164.76 and a one year high of $236.26. The stock has a market cap of $31.92 billion, a PE ratio of 38.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.97.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $734.31 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $731.67 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 7.16% and a net margin of 29.61%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.66 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.03%. AvalonBay Communities's payout ratio is 115.06%.

About AvalonBay Communities

As of December 31, 2023, the Company owned or held a direct or indirect ownership interest in 299 apartment communities containing 90,669 apartment homes in 12 states and the District of Columbia, of which 18 communities were under development. The Company is an equity REIT in the business of developing, redeveloping, acquiring and managing apartment communities in leading metropolitan areas in New England, the New York/New Jersey Metro area, the Mid-Atlantic, the Pacific Northwest, and Northern and Southern California, as well as in the Company's expansion regions of Raleigh-Durham and Charlotte, North Carolina, Southeast Florida, Dallas and Austin, Texas, and Denver, Colorado.