Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA) Shares Sold by abrdn plc

abrdn plc lessened its stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 82,327 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 2,259 shares during the period. abrdn plc’s holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities were worth $12,668,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 7,978 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,233,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the period. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC now owns 4,828 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $746,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 30.5% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 321 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its position in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 1.4% during the third quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 6,057 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $962,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA grew its holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 2.1% in the third quarter. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA now owns 4,178 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $664,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.60% of the company’s stock.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Stock Performance

NYSE:MAA opened at $158.04 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $153.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $155.12. Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. has a 1-year low of $121.51 and a 1-year high of $167.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.09 and a quick ratio of 0.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.68, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.91.

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $1.19. Mid-America Apartment Communities had a return on equity of 8.38% and a net margin of 23.84%. Analysts forecast that Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current year.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th were paid a dividend of $1.515 per share. This represents a $6.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.83%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 15th. This is a positive change from Mid-America Apartment Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. Mid-America Apartment Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 136.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MAA. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Mid-America Apartment Communities in a research note on Friday, January 24th. They set an “inline” rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $158.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday. Scotiabank dropped their target price on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $174.00 to $173.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $157.00 to $155.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $160.00 price target on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in a research note on Friday, January 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $165.80.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Profile

Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the operation, acquisition, and development of apartment communities. It operates through the Same Store and Non-Same Store segments. The Same Store Communities segment represents those apartment communities that have been owned and stabilized for at least 12 months as of the first day of the calendar year.