Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Price Target Raised to $79.00

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) had its price objective lifted by Scotiabank from $78.00 to $79.00 in a research report report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. Scotiabank currently has a sector perform rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com raised Equity Residential from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Stifel Nicolaus raised Equity Residential from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $77.75 to $81.50 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $78.42.

Equity Residential Stock Performance

Shares of Equity Residential stock opened at $71.23 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $27.03 billion, a PE ratio of 26.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.93. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $70.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $72.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Equity Residential has a 12 month low of $58.81 and a 12 month high of $78.83.

Equity Residential Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a $0.675 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.79%. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is presently 99.26%.

Insider Transactions at Equity Residential

In related news, CFO Robert Garechana sold 4,294 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $309,425.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,108 shares in the company, valued at $1,016,622.48. The trade was a 23.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Scott Fenster sold 5,340 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $384,800.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 35,507 shares in the company, valued at $2,558,634.42. This represents a 13.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equity Residential

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Keybank National Association OH increased its stake in Equity Residential by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 7,001 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $502,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its holdings in Equity Residential by 25.3% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 722 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Equity Residential by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 3,827 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $275,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Equity Residential by 38.8% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 558 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Modera Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Equity Residential by 6.5% during the third quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,278 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $244,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Equity Residential Company Profile

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.