Advocate Group LLC Raises Stock Position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Advocate Group LLC lifted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 22,461 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 374 shares during the quarter. Advocate Group LLC’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $5,059,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in AvalonBay Communities by 2.4% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,759,095 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $883,098,000 after purchasing an additional 109,585 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,074,269 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $429,145,000 after buying an additional 13,631 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 14.4% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,980,675 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $367,534,000 after acquiring an additional 249,400 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,847,511 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $342,824,000 after acquiring an additional 8,809 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in AvalonBay Communities by 11.9% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,183,121 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $244,776,000 after acquiring an additional 126,055 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CIO Matthew H. Birenbaum sold 5,000 shares of AvalonBay Communities stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.90, for a total transaction of $1,044,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive now owns 65,967 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,780,506.30. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CIO Matthew H. Birenbaum sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.90, for a total transaction of $1,044,500.00. Following the sale, the executive now directly owns 65,967 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,780,506.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Keri A. Shea sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.17, for a total value of $414,340.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,383 shares in the company, valued at $908,026.11. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $207.00 to $214.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Scotiabank increased their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $229.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. UBS Group boosted their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $210.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $225.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $212.00 to $247.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AvalonBay Communities currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $225.88.

AvalonBay Communities Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE AVB traded up $1.08 during trading on Thursday, hitting $219.55. 62,852 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 730,862. The company has a quick ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.50, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $221.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $204.80. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 1 year low of $160.45 and a 1 year high of $236.26.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The real estate investment trust reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.93). The firm had revenue of $726.04 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $718.49 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 7.16% and a net margin of 29.61%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.66 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.01 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.10%. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 101.19%.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

As of December 31, 2023, the Company owned or held a direct or indirect ownership interest in 299 apartment communities containing 90,669 apartment homes in 12 states and the District of Columbia, of which 18 communities were under development. The Company is an equity REIT in the business of developing, redeveloping, acquiring and managing apartment communities in leading metropolitan areas in New England, the New York/New Jersey Metro area, the Mid-Atlantic, the Pacific Northwest, and Northern and Southern California, as well as in the Company's expansion regions of Raleigh-Durham and Charlotte, North Carolina, Southeast Florida, Dallas and Austin, Texas, and Denver, Colorado.