Hartford Investment Management Co. Sells 660 Shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Hartford Investment Management Co. reduced its position in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,409 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 660 shares during the period. Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $1,594,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Equity Residential during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Equity Residential during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of Equity Residential by 69.6% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 475 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its stake in Equity Residential by 41.9% during the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 525 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Equity Residential by 146.6% in the 2nd quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 550 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equity Residential Price Performance

NYSE:EQR opened at $76.06 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The firm has a market cap of $28.87 billion, a PE ratio of 31.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.05 and a beta of 0.89. Equity Residential has a 12 month low of $52.57 and a 12 month high of $78.83. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $74.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $69.55.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.96 by ($0.49). Equity Residential had a return on equity of 8.53% and a net margin of 32.83%. The business had revenue of $734.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $735.26 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.94 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Equity Residential will post 3.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equity Residential Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 24th were issued a $0.675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 24th. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.55%. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio is 112.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Equity Residential from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Equity Residential from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $77.00 in a report on Monday, August 26th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Equity Residential in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $83.00 target price for the company. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on Equity Residential from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $75.97.

About Equity Residential

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.