New York State Teachers Retirement System Cuts Holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA)

New York State Teachers Retirement System lessened its position in Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA - Free Report) by 6.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 95,733 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 6,233 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.08% of Mid-America Apartment Communities worth $14,797,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in the third quarter worth $37,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in Mid-America Apartment Communities in the third quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 30.5% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 321 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.60% of the company's stock.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE MAA traded up $0.57 during trading on Friday, hitting $160.65. The stock had a trading volume of 1,041,296 shares, compared to its average volume of 744,225. Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. has a one year low of $123.23 and a one year high of $167.39. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $153.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $156.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a current ratio of 0.08.

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $1.19. Mid-America Apartment Communities had a return on equity of 8.53% and a net margin of 24.03%. Sell-side analysts predict that Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. will post 8.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th were given a dividend of $1.515 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 15th. This is a positive change from Mid-America Apartment Communities's previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. This represents a $6.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.77%. Mid-America Apartment Communities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 135.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on MAA shares. Scotiabank raised Mid-America Apartment Communities from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $173.00 to $182.00 in a research note on Friday, February 14th. JMP Securities reissued a "market outperform" rating and set a $160.00 price target on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $157.00 to $155.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley raised Mid-America Apartment Communities from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $159.50 to $168.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $163.00 to $159.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $167.00.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Profile

Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the operation, acquisition, and development of apartment communities. It operates through the Same Store and Non-Same Store segments. The Same Store Communities segment represents those apartment communities that have been owned and stabilized for at least 12 months as of the first day of the calendar year.