Swiss National Bank Sells 20,300 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Swiss National Bank reduced its holdings in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 401,721 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 20,300 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned about 0.28% of AvalonBay Communities worth $88,367,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 312.5% during the 4th quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 363 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 275 shares during the period. 92.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AVB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $247.00 to $262.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley cut AvalonBay Communities from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $236.00 to $223.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $270.00 to $265.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $229.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $238.64.

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AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

NYSE AVB traded up $0.41 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $210.66. The company had a trading volume of 609,835 shares, compared to its average volume of 625,372. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $217.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $223.21. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $177.40 and a fifty-two week high of $239.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market cap of $29.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.00.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.80 earnings per share (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 analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $7.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.32%. This is an increase from AvalonBay Communities's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. AvalonBay Communities's payout ratio is currently 92.23%.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

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.