4,286 Shares in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Bought by MQS Management LLC

MQS Management LLC bought a new position in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 4,286 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $1,167,000. Essex Property Trust accounts for about 0.7% of MQS Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 214.3% in the second quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 110 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in Essex Property Trust by 600.0% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 112 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Family Firm Inc. bought a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Vima LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust during the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 121.8% in the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 193 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ESS has been the topic of several research reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Essex Property Trust from $284.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $283.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $240.00 to $308.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of Essex Property Trust from $295.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Essex Property Trust in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $318.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $291.10.

Essex Property Trust Trading Down 0.0 %

ESS opened at $312.00 on Thursday. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 1-year low of $203.85 and a 1-year high of $317.73. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $290.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $267.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.03 billion, a PE ratio of 38.14, a PEG ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

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

Essex Property Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a $2.45 dividend. This represents a $9.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio is 119.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Essex Property Trust news, Director Amal M. Johnson sold 2,453 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $735,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,585 shares in the company, valued at approximately $775,500. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Essex Property Trust news, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 8,080 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.10, for a total value of $2,546,008.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 9,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,991,559.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Amal M. Johnson sold 2,453 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $735,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,585 shares in the company, valued at approximately $775,500. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 16,884 shares of company stock worth $5,143,094 over the last three months. 3.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Essex Property Trust 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.