Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Stock Position Raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,210,383 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 136,275 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $302,137,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EQR. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Equity Residential by 607.8% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 361 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 310 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Continuum Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Equity Residential in the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 38.8% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 558 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the period. 92.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on EQR. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.25 price target on shares of Equity Residential in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Equity Residential from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. StockNews.com raised Equity Residential from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Equity Residential presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $78.51.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equity Residential

In related news, EVP Scott Fenster sold 5,340 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $384,800.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 35,507 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,558,634.42. This represents a 13.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of Equity Residential stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $46,262.52. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,539 shares in the company, valued at $1,840,340.34. This represents a 2.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,763 shares of company stock valued at $1,424,217 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Equity Residential Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EQR opened at $71.38 on Monday. Equity Residential has a 12 month low of $59.48 and a 12 month high of $78.84. The company has a market cap of $27.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.24, a P/E/G ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.91. The business’s 50 day moving average is $70.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.6925 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.88%. This is a positive change from Equity Residential’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is 101.84%.

Equity Residential Company 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.