AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Shares Acquired by Townsquare Capital LLC

Townsquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 42.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 4,900 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,450 shares during the quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $1,104,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the third quarter worth $39,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in AvalonBay Communities by 1,877.8% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 178 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. increased its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 38.6% in the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 201 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Finally, Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on AVB shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $212.00 to $247.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $213.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $244.00 to $241.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 14th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on AvalonBay Communities in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $225.00 to $229.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $228.67.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

AvalonBay Communities stock opened at $230.73 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $226.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $215.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.64. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $169.37 and a fifty-two week high of $239.29. The company has a market cap of $32.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.97.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last posted 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). The business had revenue of $734.31 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $731.67 million. AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 36.20% and a return on equity of 8.84%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.66 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.03 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.95%. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is 93.02%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of AvalonBay Communities stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was 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 trade represents a 21.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

AvalonBay Communities Company 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.