MML Investors Services LLC Takes $246,000 Position in Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT)

MML Investors Services LLC purchased a new position in Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 11,977 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $246,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of IRT. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 236.0% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,027,943 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $82,573,000 after buying an additional 2,829,247 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Independence Realty Trust by 24.4% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,360,979 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $232,900,000 after purchasing an additional 2,225,371 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in Independence Realty Trust by 419.2% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,433,058 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $29,378,000 after purchasing an additional 1,157,052 shares during the last quarter. B&I Capital AG acquired a new stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust in the 2nd quarter valued at $10,900,000. Finally, Easterly Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Independence Realty Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at $11,132,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.25% of the company’s stock.

Independence Realty Trust Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of IRT stock opened at $20.32 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $20.69 and a 200-day moving average of $19.86. The stock has a market cap of $4.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.26, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.19. Independence Realty Trust, Inc. has a 1-year low of $14.07 and a 1-year high of $22.26.

Independence Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.15%. Independence Realty Trust’s payout ratio is 237.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. JMP Securities raised their price objective on Independence Realty Trust from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Barclays started coverage on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $23.00 price objective for the company. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Independence Realty Trust from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Independence Realty Trust from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised Independence Realty Trust from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $19.00 to $21.00 in a report on Friday, November 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.14.

About Independence Realty Trust

Independence Realty Trust, Inc (NYSE: IRT) is a real estate investment trust that owns and operates multifamily communities, across non-gateway U.S. markets including Atlanta, GA, Dallas, TX, Denver, CO, Columbus, OH, Indianapolis, IN, Raleigh-Durham, NC, Oklahoma City, OK, Nashville, TN, Houston, TX, and Tampa, FL.