PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Grows Position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) by 25.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 19,205 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 3,920 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.'s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $4,326,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,074,269 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $429,145,000 after buying an additional 13,631 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 11.9% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,183,121 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $244,776,000 after purchasing an additional 126,055 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 6.1% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 521,815 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $96,781,000 after purchasing an additional 29,953 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 461,937 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $95,570,000 after buying an additional 26,859 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 422,021 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $95,060,000 after buying an additional 1,500 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.61% of the company's stock.

AvalonBay Communities Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE:AVB traded up $1.00 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $232.94. The stock had a trading volume of 977,381 shares, compared to its average volume of 721,428. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $226.36 and a 200 day moving average of $214.27. The company has a market capitalization of $33.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.87, a PEG ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.97. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a one year low of $169.37 and a one year high of $236.26.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $734.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $731.67 million. AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 36.20% and a return on equity of 8.84%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.66 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.03 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. AvalonBay Communities's payout ratio is presently 93.02%.

Insider Activity at AvalonBay Communities

In other news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.47, for a total value of $5,532,538.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 87,239 shares in the company, valued at $20,367,689.33. This trade represents a 21.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on AVB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $212.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Zelman & Associates raised shares of AvalonBay Communities to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $222.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on AvalonBay Communities in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $250.00 price target for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $234.00 to $233.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $226.88.

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.