LPL Financial LLC Decreases Stake in Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT)

LPL Financial LLC cut its stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 391,263 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 3,824 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.17% of Independence Realty Trust worth $7,763,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in IRT. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in Independence Realty Trust by 66.0% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,310 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Independence Realty Trust by 627.5% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 2,328 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 2,008 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its holdings in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 67.1% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,491 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 33.9% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,735 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 692 shares during the period. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Independence Realty Trust during the third quarter worth $64,000. 88.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Independence Realty Trust Price Performance

Independence Realty Trust stock opened at $19.00 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.39 billion, a PE ratio of 105.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.98. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $20.32. Independence Realty Trust, Inc. has a 12 month low of $15.27 and a 12 month high of $22.26.

Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.24. Independence Realty Trust had a net margin of 6.15% and a return on equity of 1.11%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Independence Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Independence Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. Independence Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio is presently 355.56%.

Insider Transactions at Independence Realty Trust

In related news, CEO Scott Schaeffer sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.21, for a total transaction of $212,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 873,365 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,524,071.65. The trade was a 1.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on IRT. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $22.00 price target on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Independence Realty Trust from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $20.00 to $24.00 in a report on Monday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Independence Realty Trust in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $24.00 price target for the company. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Independence Realty Trust from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.00.

Independence Realty Trust Profile

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.