Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Shares Sold by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC cut its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 24.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 116,769 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 37,425 shares during the period. Barclays PLC’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $33,331,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ESS. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Essex Property Trust by 37.5% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 154 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter worth $45,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 124.0% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 224 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in Essex Property Trust by 486.8% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 223 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $64,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Essex Property Trust

In related news, Director Mary Kasaris sold 2,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.80, for a total transaction of $842,240.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $527,904. The trade was a 61.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 7,298 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total value of $2,298,870.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,077,170. The trade was a 31.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,345 shares of company stock worth $6,682,539 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ESS opened at $275.37 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $291.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $291.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.86, a PEG ratio of 6.84 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 52 week low of $234.77 and a 52 week high of $317.73.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $2.52. Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 13.05% and a net margin of 41.79%. Analysts anticipate that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a $2.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $10.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.73%. This is an increase from Essex Property Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio is presently 89.08%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ESS. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $292.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Essex Property Trust from $302.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Essex Property Trust from $297.00 to $302.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $308.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $314.00 to $305.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $307.11.

Essex Property Trust Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.