KCM Investment Advisors LLC Has $387,000 Holdings in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS)

KCM Investment Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 36.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,580 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 915 shares during the period. KCM Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $387,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,913 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $474,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 2,552 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $633,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,866 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $463,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 10.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 591 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $145,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Czech National Bank raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 11,296 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,765,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Essex Property Trust

In related news, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 3,780 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.27, for a total value of $1,051,860.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 9,494 shares in the company, valued at $2,641,895.38. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 3,780 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.27, for a total value of $1,051,860.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 9,494 shares in the company, valued at $2,641,895.38. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.57, for a total transaction of $2,745,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 16,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,425,519.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

Shares of ESS stock traded up $2.16 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $276.49. 36,229 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 373,189. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $203.85 and a fifty-two week high of $284.77. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $268.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $249.62. The company has a market cap of $17.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.54, a P/E/G ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 3.19 and a quick ratio of 3.19.

Essex Property Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 24th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th will be issued a $2.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $9.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.54%. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently 119.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on ESS shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $250.00 to $266.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $255.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $244.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Essex Property Trust currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $261.05.

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.