Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $78.51.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on EQR. Mizuho decreased their target price on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com raised Equity Residential from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays cut 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 report on Friday, January 24th.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of Equity Residential stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $46,262.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,840,340.34. This trade represents a 2.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 9,487 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total value of $683,728.09. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 26,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,930,106.67. The trade was a 26.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Equity Residential

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Equity Residential in the fourth quarter worth approximately $879,000. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Equity Residential by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 588,059 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $42,199,000 after purchasing an additional 46,671 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 19,749 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,417,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the period. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ purchased a new stake in Equity Residential in the 4th quarter valued at about $8,593,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in shares of Equity Residential in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,584,000. Institutional investors own 92.68% of the company’s stock.

Equity Residential Stock Performance

EQR stock opened at $71.38 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.10 billion, a PE ratio of 26.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.91. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $70.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $72.53. Equity Residential has a 12-month low of $59.48 and a 12-month high of $78.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.6925 dividend. This represents a $2.77 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is an increase from Equity Residential’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is 101.84%.

About Equity Residential

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.