Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC Increases Stock Holdings in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 18.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,630 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 256 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $367,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AVB. &PARTNERS purchased a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,538,000. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the first quarter worth $4,532,000. American Assets Capital Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter worth $1,014,000. Diversified Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the second quarter valued at $1,139,000. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 10.0% in the 1st quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 100,334 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $18,338,000 after acquiring an additional 9,125 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on AVB shares. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $234.00 to $233.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $244.00 to $241.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $206.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $212.00 to $247.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $250.00 target price for the company. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $226.88.

Insider Activity at AvalonBay Communities

In related news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.47, for a total transaction of $5,532,538.59. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 87,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,367,689.33. This represents a 21.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AVB opened at $231.18 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.64. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $226.41 and a 200 day moving average of $213.51. The firm has a market cap of $32.88 billion, a PE ratio of 31.62, a PEG ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.97. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a one year low of $169.37 and a one year high of $236.26.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.61 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.10). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.84% and a net margin of 36.20%. The company had revenue of $734.31 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $731.67 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.66 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is 93.02%.

AvalonBay Communities Profile

As of December 31, 2023, the Company owned or held a direct or indirect ownership interest in 299 apartment communities containing 90,669 apartment homes in 12 states and the District of Columbia, of which 18 communities were under development. The Company is an equity REIT in the business of developing, redeveloping, acquiring and managing apartment communities in leading metropolitan areas in New England, the New York/New Jersey Metro area, the Mid-Atlantic, the Pacific Northwest, and Northern and Southern California, as well as in the Company's expansion regions of Raleigh-Durham and Charlotte, North Carolina, Southeast Florida, Dallas and Austin, Texas, and Denver, Colorado.