Polymer Capital Management US LLC Invests $826,000 in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Polymer Capital Management US LLC bought a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 3,754 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $826,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AVB. Norges Bank bought a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,499,050,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 49.9% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,488,975 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $547,500,000 after acquiring an additional 828,009 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its position in AvalonBay Communities by 51.7% during the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 554,290 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $121,927,000 after acquiring an additional 188,906 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,153,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in AvalonBay Communities by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,693,457 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $810,470,000 after purchasing an additional 107,655 shares during the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

Shares of AVB stock traded down $0.64 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $192.95. The company had a trading volume of 1,234,629 shares, compared to its average volume of 691,755. The company has a market capitalization of $27.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.42, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.86. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $213.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $219.85. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $177.40 and a 52-week high of $239.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.64.

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AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.83 by ($0.03). AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 37.13% and a return on equity of 9.15%. Equities research analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current 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 paid a dividend of $1.75 per share. 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.63%. AvalonBay Communities's dividend payout ratio is presently 92.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on AVB. Mizuho raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the company from $239.00 to $242.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley cut shares of AvalonBay Communities from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $236.00 to $223.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $270.00 to $265.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised AvalonBay Communities from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $247.00 to $262.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $237.47.

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.