SG Americas Securities LLC Lowers Stock Position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

SG Americas Securities LLC reduced its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 99.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 763 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 171,855 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $168,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AVB. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the third quarter valued at about $39,000. Mather Group LLC. increased its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 38.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 201 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 59.9% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 478 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE AVB opened at $220.23 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $220.50 and a 200-day moving average of $222.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.02, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.37 and a 12 month high of $239.29.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.83 by ($0.03). AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 37.13% and a return on equity of 9.15%. Sell-side analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $1.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is a positive change from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.18%. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is 89.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on AVB shares. Morgan Stanley lowered AvalonBay Communities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $236.00 to $223.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Mizuho upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $239.00 to $242.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $247.00 to $262.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $243.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $234.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.47, for a total transaction of $5,532,538.59. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 87,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,367,689.33. This trade represents a 21.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.