Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Sets New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) hit a new 52-week low on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $59.41 and last traded at $61.44, with a volume of 492016 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $61.82.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays lowered their price objective on Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.25 price objective on Equity Residential in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Equity Residential currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $78.51.

Equity Residential Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $24.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.76, a P/E/G ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company’s fifty day moving average is $70.29 and its 200 day moving average is $71.71.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.6925 per share. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.29%. This is a positive change from Equity Residential’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is presently 101.84%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $46,262.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,840,340.34. The trade was a 2.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Robert Garechana sold 4,294 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $309,425.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,108 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,016,622.48. The trade was a 23.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217 in the last quarter. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equity Residential

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Equity Residential by 607.8% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 361 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Equity Residential in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 51.6% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 461 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 109.5% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 551 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Equity Residential Company Profile

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.