Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA) Shares Bought by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA - Free Report) by 3.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 143,909 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 4,618 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.12% of Mid-America Apartment Communities worth $22,867,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of MAA. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Mid-America Apartment Communities during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities during the third quarter valued at about $32,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 82.4% during the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 239 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities during the third quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in the 3rd quarter worth about $45,000. 93.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Stock Up 0.3 %

MAA stock traded up $0.46 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $155.22. 277,807 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 741,283. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $156.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $152.84. The company has a market capitalization of $18.14 billion, a PE ratio of 35.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.90. Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. has a twelve month low of $121.51 and a twelve month high of $167.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 0.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.18 by ($1.20). Mid-America Apartment Communities had a return on equity of 8.38% and a net margin of 23.84%. The company had revenue of $551.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $548.53 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.29 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. will post 8.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.515 per share. This represents a $6.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.90%. This is a boost from Mid-America Apartment Communities's previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 15th. Mid-America Apartment Communities's dividend payout ratio is 136.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on MAA shares. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $166.00 target price for the company. KeyCorp raised shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $180.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $169.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com lowered Mid-America Apartment Communities from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $139.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $163.76.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Profile

MAA, an S&P 500 company, is a real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on delivering full-cycle and superior investment performance for shareholders through the ownership, management, acquisition, development and redevelopment of quality apartment communities primarily in the Southeast, Southwest and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.