Treasurer of the State of North Carolina Cuts Stock Holdings in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lessened its position in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Free Report) by 25.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 170,474 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 59,350 shares during the quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina's holdings in Equity Residential were worth $12,233,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Equity Residential by 607.8% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 361 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Equity Residential in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in Equity Residential by 109.5% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 551 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Equity Residential by 38.8% during the 4th 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. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings in Equity Residential by 208.1% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 610 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equity Residential Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:EQR opened at $64.62 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average is $70.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $71.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.36 and a quick ratio of 0.36. Equity Residential has a 1 year low of $59.41 and a 1 year high of $78.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.54 billion, a PE ratio of 23.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.85.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 represents a $2.77 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.29%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from Equity Residential's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Equity Residential's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 101.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on EQR shares. Mizuho lowered their target price on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com upgraded Equity Residential from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $78.51.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $46,262.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 25,539 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,840,340.34. The trade was a 2.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 9,487 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was 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 $1,930,106.67. The trade was a 26.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

About Equity Residential

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.

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