Equity Lifestyle Properties (NYSE:ELS) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Should You Sell?

Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. (NYSE:ELS) shares hit a new 52-week low on Thursday. The stock traded as low as $58.32 and last traded at $58.4540, with a volume of 1538019 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $58.71.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ELS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed a “mixed” rating and set a $59.00 target price (down from $62.50) on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Barclays set a $69.00 price objective on Equity Lifestyle Properties and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $65.00 target price (down from $72.00) on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties in a research report on Monday, September 21st. UBS Group set a $65.00 price target on Equity Lifestyle Properties in a report on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Odeon Capital Group set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties in a report on Thursday, July 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.88.

Equity Lifestyle Properties Stock Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $62.90 and a 200-day moving average of $63.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.01, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.63.

Equity Lifestyle Properties (NYSE:ELS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by ($0.22). Equity Lifestyle Properties had a net margin of 25.92% and a return on equity of 22.31%. The firm had revenue of $397.81 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $383.66 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.69 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. will post 3.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Equity Lifestyle Properties Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 25th will be paid a $0.5425 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 25th. This represents a $2.17 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Equity Lifestyle Properties’s dividend payout ratio is presently 104.33%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ELS. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its position in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties by 126.8% during the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 415 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 232 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new position in Equity Lifestyle Properties in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Clearstead Trust LLC acquired a new stake in Equity Lifestyle Properties during the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new stake in Equity Lifestyle Properties during the 2nd quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties during the second quarter worth $38,000. 97.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Equity Lifestyle Properties

Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc (NYSE:ELS) is a real estate investment trust that owns and operates manufactured home communities, recreational vehicle resorts and marinas. Its properties provide residential sites for manufactured homes and park model homes, as well as vacation-oriented accommodations and facilities for RV owners and boaters.

The company serves a range of residents and travelers through long-term manufactured housing communities, seasonal and transient RV resorts, and marina properties.