Sentry Investment Management LLC Has $98,000 Stake in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Sentry Investment Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 14.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,366 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 222 shares during the quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $98,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of EQR. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Equity Residential by 806.4% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,259,145 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $317,136,000 after acquiring an additional 3,789,234 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Equity Residential by 1,459.8% during the third quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,949,473 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $145,158,000 after acquiring an additional 1,824,494 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Equity Residential by 29.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,746,494 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $576,804,000 after acquiring an additional 1,741,840 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Equity Residential by 8.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,745,615 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $576,737,000 after acquiring an additional 591,866 shares during the period. Finally, Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Equity Residential by 2,193.2% during the third quarter. Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC now owns 416,647 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $31,024,000 after acquiring an additional 398,478 shares during the period. 92.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equity Residential

In other news, EVP Scott Fenster sold 5,340 shares of Equity Residential stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $384,800.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 35,507 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,558,634.42. The trade was a 13.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 9,487 shares of Equity Residential stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $683,728.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 26,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,930,106.67. This trade represents a 26.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 19,763 shares of company stock valued at $1,424,217. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Equity Residential Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE EQR opened at $72.80 on Thursday. 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 stock’s 50 day moving average is $70.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.83. The company has a market capitalization of $27.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.76, a PEG ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.93. Equity Residential has a 1-year low of $58.93 and a 1-year high of $78.83.

Equity Residential Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.675 per share. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is 99.26%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on EQR shares. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $78.46.

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.