Groupe la Francaise Has $5.90 Million Holdings in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. $AVB

Groupe la Francaise grew its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 18.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,095 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,559 shares during the period. Groupe la Francaise’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $5,896,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Perpetual Ltd increased its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.5% during the second quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 10,650 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,167,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional raised its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 6.3% during the second quarter. CX Institutional now owns 973 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $198,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Probity Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.7% in the second quarter. Probity Advisors Inc. now owns 2,243 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $456,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC grew its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 62.0% during the second quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 162 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1.0% during the first quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 6,417 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,377,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Up 0.9%

AVB stock opened at $181.22 on Wednesday. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 1-year low of $166.73 and a 1-year high of $231.21. The stock has a market cap of $25.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.74. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $183.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $193.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $766.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $766.22 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 9.72% and a net margin of 38.78%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.74 earnings per share. Analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $1.75 per share. This represents a $7.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 85.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AVB has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $202.00 to $197.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded AvalonBay Communities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 1st. Mizuho decreased their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $199.00 to $191.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 24th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $216.00 to $192.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $213.00 to $193.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $206.73.

About AvalonBay Communities

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.