Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Price Target Raised to $316.00

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) had its price target hoisted by Cantor Fitzgerald from $291.00 to $316.00 in a research report released on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. Cantor Fitzgerald currently has an overweight rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on ESS. Mizuho boosted their price target on Essex Property Trust from $285.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $303.00 price target on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings raised Essex Property Trust from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $293.00 to $302.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $292.75 price target on Essex Property Trust in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $303.99.

Essex Property Trust Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of ESS opened at $287.65 on Monday. Essex Property Trust has a 12 month low of $238.46 and a 12 month high of $303.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The company has a market capitalization of $18.49 billion, a PE ratio of 44.74, a PEG ratio of 10.53 and a beta of 0.69. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $287.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $267.05.

Essex Property Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $2.59 per share. This represents a $10.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 161.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Essex Property Trust news, Director Mary Kasaris sold 600 shares of Essex Property Trust stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.45, for a total value of $167,670.00. Following the sale, the director owned 2,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $669,003.30. The trade was a 20.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 3.47% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,664,000. Focus Partners Wealth bought a new position in Essex Property Trust during the first quarter valued at $223,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 70.1% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 279 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in Essex Property Trust by 186.2% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 33,614 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,526,000 after buying an additional 21,871 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia raised its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 10.9% in the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 8,274 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,345,000 after buying an additional 811 shares during the period. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Essex Property Trust Company Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc (NYSE: ESS) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on market-rate apartment communities and delivers a full suite of property services including leasing, resident services, asset management, and capital improvement programs designed to preserve and enhance long?term property values.

Essex concentrates its portfolio in West Coast markets, with a significant presence in California and the Pacific Northwest.