Analysts Set Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA) PT at $165.31

Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have assigned a hold recommendation, eight have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $166.92.

MAA has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $169.00 to $165.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $180.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $175.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, October 21st. StockNews.com cut shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $139.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Stock Down 1.0 %

MAA opened at $148.22 on Friday. Mid-America Apartment Communities has a 12 month low of $121.51 and a 12 month high of $167.39. The company has a market cap of $17.32 billion, a PE ratio of 33.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 0.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company has a 50 day moving average of $156.78 and a 200 day moving average of $153.78.

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by ($1.20). Mid-America Apartment Communities had a return on equity of 8.38% and a net margin of 23.84%. The company had revenue of $551.13 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $548.53 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.29 earnings per share. Mid-America Apartment Communities’s revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Mid-America Apartment Communities will post 8.88 EPS for the current year.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be given a $1.515 dividend. This represents a $6.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 15th. This is a boost from Mid-America Apartment Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. Mid-America Apartment Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 136.79%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mid-America Apartment Communities

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its position in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 1.1% in the second quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 6,986 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $996,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities by 1.4% in the third quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 6,057 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $962,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA raised its holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA now owns 4,178 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $664,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its position in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 1,444 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $229,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Advocates Investment Management grew its holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 2,308 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $367,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.60% of the company’s stock.

About Mid-America Apartment Communities

MAA, an S&P 500 company, is a real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on delivering full-cycle and superior investment performance for shareholders through the ownership, management, acquisition, development and redevelopment of quality apartment communities primarily in the Southeast, Southwest and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.