Federated Hermes Inc. Buys 1,761 Shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS)

Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 237.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,502 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 1,761 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $681,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 81,456 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $19,941,000 after acquiring an additional 2,083 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 8.7% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 225,045 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $55,093,000 after purchasing an additional 18,000 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC boosted its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 107.9% during the first quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 43,802 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $10,723,000 after buying an additional 22,736 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 62,067 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $15,389,000 after buying an additional 5,887 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust in the second quarter worth approximately $743,000. 96.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ESS. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $282.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $284.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $265.00 to $297.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $315.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Wedbush raised their target price on shares of Essex Property Trust from $264.00 to $301.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. One investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essex Property Trust presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $291.10.

Essex Property Trust Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE:ESS opened at $306.21 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $292.19 and its 200 day moving average is $268.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.62. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $203.85 and a 1 year high of $317.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.43, a P/E/G ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.88.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.85 by ($2.40). The company had revenue of $442.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $433.26 million. Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 30.31% and a return on equity of 9.14%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.77 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $2.45 per share. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 119.80%.

Insider Activity at Essex Property Trust

In related news, Director Amal M. Johnson sold 7,298 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.31, for a total value of $2,308,430.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,585 shares in the company, valued at approximately $817,661.35. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Amal M. Johnson sold 2,453 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 2,585 shares in the company, valued at $775,500. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Amal M. Johnson sold 7,298 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.31, for a total transaction of $2,308,430.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,585 shares in the company, valued at approximately $817,661.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,402 shares of company stock valued at $6,399,663 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

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.