Park Avenue Securities LLC Has $625,000 Stock Holdings in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its stake in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 87.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,706 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,056 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $625,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of EQR. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Equity Residential during the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 2,529.4% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 447 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 430 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of Equity Residential in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of Equity Residential by 69.6% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 475 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EQR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Mizuho reduced their price target on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Barclays started coverage on shares of Equity Residential in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $83.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Equity Residential from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $77.75 to $81.50 in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $81.00 to $78.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $78.69.

Equity Residential Stock Performance

NYSE:EQR opened at $68.37 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $72.33 and its 200-day moving average is $72.65. Equity Residential has a 1-year low of $57.33 and a 1-year high of $78.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The stock has a market cap of $25.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.48 and a beta of 0.93.

Equity Residential Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were given a $0.675 dividend. This represents a $2.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.95%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 110.66%.

Equity Residential 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.