Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Raises Stake in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Free Report) by 4.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 552,780 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 22,453 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.15% of Equity Residential worth $39,667,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Equity Residential by 607.8% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 361 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Equity Residential in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Equity Residential in the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Continuum Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 38.8% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 558 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.68% of the company's stock.

Equity Residential Price Performance

Shares of EQR traded up $0.25 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $71.53. 236,180 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,640,722. The stock has a market cap of $27.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.91. Equity Residential has a 1-year low of $59.48 and a 1-year high of $78.83. The company has a 50 day moving average of $71.01 and a 200-day moving average of $72.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.36.

Remove Ads

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.6925 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.87%. This is a boost from Equity Residential's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Equity Residential's dividend payout ratio is presently 101.84%.

Insider Activity

In other Equity Residential news, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 9,487 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total value of $683,728.09. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 26,781 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,930,106.67. This trade represents a 26.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of Equity Residential stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $46,262.52. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 25,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,840,340.34. This trade represents a 2.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217 over the last quarter. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EQR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com raised shares of Equity Residential from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $78.51.

About Equity Residential

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.