AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Shares Sold by New York Life Investment Management LLC

New York Life Investment Management LLC lessened its holdings in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 44.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 21,077 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 16,568 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $4,636,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 12,179 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,679,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter worth $893,000. LDR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. LDR Capital Management LLC now owns 9,474 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,084,000 after purchasing an additional 795 shares during the period. Finally, Winebrenner Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter valued at $880,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AVB opened at $226.17 on Friday. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $174.46 and a fifty-two week high of $239.29. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $218.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $223.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market cap of $32.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.00.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.83 by ($0.03). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 9.15% and a net margin of 37.13%. Equities analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $1.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.10%. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is 92.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AVB has been the subject of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $270.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $229.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Mizuho raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $239.00 to $242.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $236.00 to $223.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $226.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $238.64.

AvalonBay Communities Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.