Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Stock Position Increased by Royal London Asset Management Ltd.

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. raised its position in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Free Report) by 7.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 187,126 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 13,656 shares during the quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $13,428,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Keybank National Association OH boosted its holdings in Equity Residential by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 7,001 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $502,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. AdvisorNet Financial Inc grew its holdings in Equity Residential by 25.3% during the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 722 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 38.8% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 558 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 5,604 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $402,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 31,433 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $2,256,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.68% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

Equity Residential Stock Performance

EQR stock traded up $0.49 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $71.52. The company had a trading volume of 1,111,038 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,578,167. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $70.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $72.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Equity Residential has a one year low of $59.48 and a one year high of $78.84.

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 given a $0.6925 dividend. This is a boost from Equity Residential's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.77 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.87%. Equity Residential's dividend payout ratio is 101.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Equity Residential

In other news, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $46,262.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,539 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,840,340.34. This represents a 2.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 9,487 shares of Equity Residential stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $683,728.09. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 26,781 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,930,106.67. This represents a 26.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Equity Residential Company Profile

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.