Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Upgraded by Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft to Buy Rating

Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESSFree Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft currently has $310.00 target price on the real estate investment trust’s stock, up from their previous target price of $308.00.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Thursday, January 16th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Essex Property Trust from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $323.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Bank of America cut Essex Property Trust from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $307.00 to $321.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Barclays started coverage on Essex Property Trust in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $316.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Essex Property Trust from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $297.00 to $303.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Essex Property Trust presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $305.53.

Read Our Latest Research Report on Essex Property Trust

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

Shares of Essex Property Trust stock opened at $285.19 on Tuesday. Essex Property Trust has a twelve month low of $223.06 and a twelve month high of $317.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.32, a PEG ratio of 5.43 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $292.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $292.05.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESSGet Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.88 by ($2.04). Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 31.55% and a return on equity of 9.72%. The firm had revenue of $450.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $445.88 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.78 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Essex Property Trust will post 15.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a $2.45 dividend. This represents a $9.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently 114.49%.

Institutional Trading of Essex Property Trust

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ESS. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 732.9% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 719,596 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $212,583,000 after buying an additional 633,200 shares during the last quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. bought a new stake in Essex Property Trust in the second quarter valued at about $98,594,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Essex Property Trust in the third quarter valued at about $84,393,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 154.7% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 444,391 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $131,282,000 after buying an additional 269,923 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 16.1% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,329,516 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $392,766,000 after buying an additional 183,947 shares during the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Essex Property Trust

(Get Free Report)

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.

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Analyst Recommendations for Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS)

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