JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Price Target to $297.00

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) had its price objective lifted by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $265.00 to $297.00 in a research report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price suggests a potential downside of 4.80% from the company’s current price.

ESS has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $240.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Wedbush upped their target price on shares of Essex Property Trust from $264.00 to $301.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $269.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 26th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $261.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on Essex Property Trust from $268.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $291.10.

Essex Property Trust Stock Performance

NYSE:ESS opened at $311.99 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a current ratio of 1.62. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $290.16 and its 200-day moving average is $267.29. Essex Property Trust has a 52-week low of $203.85 and a 52-week high of $317.73. The company has a market cap of $20.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.14, a PEG ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.88.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.85 by ($2.40). Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 30.31% and a return on equity of 9.14%. The firm had revenue of $442.36 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $433.26 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.77 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Essex Property Trust will post 15.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 3,780 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.27, for a total value of $1,051,860.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 9,494 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,641,895.38. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 3,780 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 9,494 shares in the company, valued at $2,641,895.38. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Amal M. Johnson sold 2,453 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $735,900.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 2,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $775,500. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter worth $134,000. ING Groep NV grew its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 5,687 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,410,000 after buying an additional 729 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter valued at about $675,183,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S raised its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 256.0% in the 4th quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 2,111 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $523,000 after acquiring an additional 1,518 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG boosted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 17.4% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 236,140 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $58,549,000 after acquiring an additional 34,931 shares during the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.