Czech National Bank Buys 1,868 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Czech National Bank lifted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 6.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,800 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,868 shares during the period. Czech National Bank’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $6,775,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Mather Group LLC. increased its position in AvalonBay Communities by 38.6% in the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 201 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 368.3% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 576 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $118,000 after acquiring an additional 453 shares in the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Mizuho upgraded AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $239.00 to $242.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $243.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $247.00 to $262.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $234.00 to $233.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Scotiabank cut their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $244.00 to $241.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $234.53.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of AvalonBay Communities stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.47, for a total value of $5,532,538.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 87,239 shares in the company, valued at $20,367,689.33. This trade represents a 21.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

AvalonBay Communities Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of AvalonBay Communities stock opened at $218.28 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $31.05 billion, a PE ratio of 29.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.99. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.37 and a 1 year high of $239.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $225.15 and a 200-day moving average price of $220.50.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $734.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $731.67 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.84% and a net margin of 36.20%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.66 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.03 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.12%. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is 93.02%.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.