Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Price Target Raised to $304.00

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) had its price target upped by equities research analysts at Truist Financial from $292.00 to $304.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “hold” rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock. Truist Financial’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 0.73% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. 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. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Essex Property Trust from $302.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Essex Property Trust from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $308.00 to $310.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $297.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $325.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essex Property Trust currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $307.16.

Essex Property Trust Trading Up 0.0 %

Essex Property Trust stock traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $301.80. 9,140 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 463,055. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.19, a PEG ratio of 6.84 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. Essex Property Trust has a fifty-two week low of $230.90 and a fifty-two week high of $317.73. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $288.49 and its 200-day moving average is $294.60.

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

Insider Activity

In other Essex Property Trust news, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 4,929 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $314.99, for a total value of $1,552,585.71. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 13,662 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,303,393.38. The trade was a 26.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 7,298 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total transaction of $2,298,870.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,118 shares in the company, valued at $5,077,170. This represents a 31.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 18,545 shares of company stock valued at $5,840,299. 3.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESS. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in Essex Property Trust by 2,400.0% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 100 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Essex Property Trust during the third quarter worth about $39,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 37.5% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 154 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Institutional investors own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

About Essex Property Trust

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.