Teacher Retirement System of Texas Buys 6,531 Shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc. (NYSE:ELS)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its stake in shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc. (NYSE:ELS) by 63.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,800 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 6,531 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Equity LifeStyle Properties were worth $1,119,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. National Pension Service purchased a new position in shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new position in Equity LifeStyle Properties in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in Equity LifeStyle Properties by 43.5% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 564 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Equity LifeStyle Properties by 68.2% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 898 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. 97.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Equity LifeStyle Properties Trading Up 1.0 %

NYSE ELS opened at $66.39 on Friday. Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc. has a 52 week low of $59.82 and a 52 week high of $76.60. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $66.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $68.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 0.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The firm has a market cap of $12.69 billion, a PE ratio of 34.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.79.

Equity LifeStyle Properties (NYSE:ELS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76. Equity LifeStyle Properties had a return on equity of 23.12% and a net margin of 24.05%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc. will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equity LifeStyle Properties Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a $0.515 dividend. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. This is an increase from Equity LifeStyle Properties’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Equity LifeStyle Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 105.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Equity LifeStyle Properties from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Truist Financial upgraded shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $72.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $66.00 to $73.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Equity LifeStyle Properties has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $73.78.

Equity LifeStyle Properties Profile

Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the ownership and operation of lifestyle-oriented properties consisting primarily of manufactured home, and recreational vehicle communities. It operates through the following segments: Property Operations and Home Sales and Rentals Operations.