State of Alaska Department of Revenue Sells 4,051 Shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS)

State of Alaska Department of Revenue lowered its stake in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 7.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 50,581 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 4,051 shares during the quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue owned approximately 0.08% of Essex Property Trust worth $12,381,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 632.8% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 15,001 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,719,000 after purchasing an additional 12,954 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 201.1% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 534,964 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $132,639,000 after purchasing an additional 357,268 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 11.1% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 49,277 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $12,218,000 after purchasing an additional 4,943 shares during the period. JLP Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter worth about $2,802,000. Finally, Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter worth about $3,304,000. Institutional investors own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

Shares of ESS stock opened at $269.65 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $17.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.96, a PEG ratio of 3.82 and a beta of 0.86. The business’s fifty day moving average is $264.00 and its 200 day moving average is $248.00. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a twelve month low of $203.85 and a twelve month high of $284.77. The company has a quick ratio of 3.19, a current ratio of 3.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

Essex Property Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 24th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a $2.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $9.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.63%. Essex Property Trust’s payout ratio is 119.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 3,780 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.27, for a total value of $1,051,860.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 9,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,641,895.38. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Essex Property Trust news, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 3,780 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.27, for a total value of $1,051,860.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 9,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,641,895.38. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.57, for a total value of $2,745,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 16,118 shares in the company, valued at $4,425,519.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on ESS shares. UBS Group lifted their price target on Essex Property Trust from $250.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th. Bank of America upgraded Essex Property Trust from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $250.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Monday, April 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Essex Property Trust from $244.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Essex Property Trust from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th. Finally, Wedbush lifted their price target on Essex Property Trust from $240.00 to $264.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $258.63.

Essex Property Trust Company Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.