Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Shares Sold by Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. decreased its position in shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS - Free Report) by 9.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 182,678 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 19,874 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. owned approximately 0.28% of Essex Property Trust worth $52,144,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 1.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,726,072 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $508,381,000 after purchasing an additional 25,591 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 16.1% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,329,516 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $392,766,000 after buying an additional 183,947 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Essex Property Trust by 6.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 754,179 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $222,800,000 after acquiring an additional 47,114 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 732.9% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 719,596 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $212,583,000 after purchasing an additional 633,200 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 154.7% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 444,391 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $131,282,000 after purchasing an additional 269,923 shares during the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Essex Property Trust Stock Up 1.8 %

ESS stock traded up $4.89 during trading on Thursday, hitting $281.51. 42,668 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 442,361. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.86, a PEG ratio of 5.36 and a beta of 0.92. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $223.06 and a 1 year high of $317.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $289.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $292.18.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.88 by ($2.04). Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 9.72% and a net margin of 31.55%. The company had revenue of $450.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $445.88 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.78 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.58 EPS for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a dividend of $2.45 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $9.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.48%. Essex Property Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 114.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on ESS. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $325.00 to $300.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Essex Property Trust from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $323.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Essex Property Trust from $314.00 to $305.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $316.00 to $302.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $304.32.

About Essex Property Trust

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.